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Christmas in Nrpiss. As J'^'m^'^js' PRE s/Piq.— Page 135. 



YULE-TIDE in MM LATIDS 

by 
MARY P. PRINOLE 

Re/krenceUbrarUm. Minnesota Public Library Coiamisstan 

^ and J 

CIARAA.URANN 



Illustrated 

/ LJ.Bridpasn \ 
(and from photographs ; 



BOSTON 



LOTHROP. LEE 6c SHEPARD CO 



Published August, 1916 



Copyright, 19 16, 
By Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co, 



^il Rights Reserved ., 
Yule- Tide in Many Lands 



■Worwooft press 

BERWICK & SMITH CO. 

Norwood, Mass, 

U. s. A. 



SEP-! 1316 



©CLA4875U ^ Y^ 






'' The old order changeth, yielding place to 
new, 
And God fulfills Himself in many ways, 
Lest one good custom should corrupt the 
world." 

— Alfred Tennyson. 



2^7 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 

Thanks are due to the following pub- 
lishers for permission to reprint poems : 
Houghton Mifflin Company for " King 
Olafs Christmas " by H. W. Longfellow, 
" Night of Marvels " by Violante Do Ceo; 
Paul Elder & Company for " The Christ- 
mas Tree " by H. S. Russell, " At Christ- 
mas Time " ; Edgar S. Werner & Company 
for "The Christmas Sheaf" by Mrs. A. 
M. Tomlinson ; John Lane Company for 
" A Palm Branch from Palestine " by 
M. Y. Lermontov; American Ecclesiastical 
Review for " The Eve of Christmas " by 
Pope Leo XIII ; E. P. Dutton & Company 
for " The Voice of the Christ-child " by 
Phillips Brooks. 

Mary P. Pringle 
Clara A. Urann 

[7] 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER 


PAGE 


I. 


YULE-TlDE OF THE AnCIENTS 


13 


11. 


Yule-Tide in England.- 


30 


III. 


Yule-Tide in Germany^ 


55 


IV. 


Yule- Tide in Scandinavia . . 


75 


V. 


Yule-Tide in Russia - . 


103 


VI. 


Yule-Tide in France . 


120 


VII. 


YuLE-TiDE in Italy 


132 


VIII. 


Yule-Tide in Spain 


148 


IX. 


YuLE-TiDE in America 


168 




Index 


199 



[9] 



ILLUSTRATIONS 



Christmas in Naples. 
(Page 135) 



An Itaiisia I*resepto 



Frontispiece \/^ 



FACING PAGE 



King Olaf s Christmas . 

Serenaded by the Waits . 

Toy-Making in Germany 

Decorating the Christmas Tree 

On the Way to Christmas Eve Service in 
Norway 

A Christmas Bonfire in Russia 

A Christmas Tree in Paris 

A Game of Loto on Christmas Evening in 
Naples 

Christmas Festivity in Seville . 

Lighting the Yule-Log in Colonial Days 

Children of Many Nationalities at Christ- 
mas Celebration in a New York School 



26 ^ 

38 >y 

60 "^ 
64 v^ 

82 - 
no ''' 
126 > 

138^ 
150/ 
178 ^' 

192 



[11] 




CHAPTER I. 
YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCffiNTS 

" There in the Temple, carved in wood, 
The image of great Odin stood, 
And other gods, with Thor supreme 
among them." 

\ S early as two thousand years before 
■^^ Christ Yule-tide was celebrated by 
the Aryans. They were sun-worshipers 
and believed the sun was born each morn- 

[1?] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

ing, rode across the upper world, and 
sank into his grave at night. 

Day after day, as the sun's power 
diminished, these primitive people feared 
that he would eventually be overcome by 
darkness and forced to remain in the 
under world. 

When, therefore, after many months, 
he apparently wheeled about and grew 
stronger and stronger, they felt that he 
had been born again. So it came about 
that at Hweolor-tid, " the turning-time," ^ 
there was great rejoicing at the annual 
re-birth of the sun. 

In the myths and legends of these, our 
Indo-European ancestors, we find the 
origin of many of the Yule-tide customs 
now in vogue. 

According to the Younger Edda, Wodin 
or Odin, the pioneer of the North, a 

» Yule-tide. 

[14] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

descendant of Saturn, fled out of Asia. 
Going through Russia to Saxland (Ger- 
many), he conquered that country and 
left one of his sons as ruler. Then he 
visited Frankland, Jutland, Sweden, and 
Norway and established each one of his 
many sons on a throne. 

This pioneer traveler figures under 
nearly two hundred different names, and 
so it is difficult to follow him in his 
wanderings. As Wodin, he established 
throughout the northern nations many 
of the observances and customs common 
to the people of the Northland to-day. 

The Edda gives an ancient account of 
Balder, the sun-god, who was slain be- 
cause of the jealousy of Loki (fire). Loki 
knew that everything in nature except 
the mistletoe had promised not to injure 
the great god Balder. So he searched for 
the mistletoe until he found it growing 
[15] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

on an oak-tree " on the eastern slope of 
Valhalla." He cat it off and returned 
to the place where the gods were amusing 
themselves by using Balder as a target, 
hurling stones and darts, and trying to 
strike him with their battle-axes. But 
all these weapons were harmless. Then 
Loki, giving the twig of mistletoe to the 
blind god, Hoder, directed his hand and 
induced him to throw it. When the 
mistletoe struck Balder it pierced him 
through and through and he fell life- 
less. 

"So on the floor lay Balder dead ; and round ^ 
Lay thickly strewn swords, axes, darts, and 

spears. 
Which all the Gods in sport had idly thrown 
At Balder, whom no weapon pierced or clove ; 
But in his breast stood fixt the fatal bough 
Of mistletoe, which Lok the Accuser gave 
To Hoder, and unwitting Hoder threw — 
'Gainst that alone had Balder's life no charm." 

^From Matthew Arnold's " Balder Dead." 

[16] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

Great excitement prevailed among the 
assembled gods and goddesses when Bal- 
der was struck dead and sank into Hel,^ 
and they would have slain the god of 
darkness had it not occurred during their 
peace-stead, which was never to be dese- 
crated by deeds of violence. The season 
was supposed to be one of peace on earth 
and good-will to man. This is generally 
attributed to the injunction of the angels 
who sang at the birth of Christ, but ac- 
cording to a much older story the idea 
of peace and good-will at Yule-tide was 
taught centuries before Christ. 

According to the Edda, gifts from the 
gods and goddesses were laid on Balder's 
bier and he, in turn, sent gifts back from 
the realm of darkness into which he had 
fallen. However, it probably is from the 
Roman Saturnalia that the free exchange 

^Hel or " Ais grave " ; the terms were once synonymous. 

[17] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

of presents and the spirit of revelry have 
been derived. 

The Druids held the mistletoe in great 
reverence because of its mysterious birth. 
When the first new growth was discov- 
ered it was gathered by the white-robed 
priests, who cut it from the main bough 
with a golden sickle never used for any 
other purpose. 

The food peculiar to this season of re- 
joicing has retained many features of the 
feasting recorded among the earlier peo- 
ple. The boar made his appearance in 
mythological circles when one was offered 
as a gift to Frey, god of rain, sunshine, 
and the fruits of the earth. This boar 
was a remarkable animal ; he could run 
faster than a horse, through the air and 
over water. Darkness could not overtake 
him, for he was symbolical of the sun, his 
golden bristles typifying the sun's rays. 
[18] 



YULE TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

At one time the boar was believed to 
be emblematical of golden grain, as he 
was the first to teach mankind the art of 
plowing. Because of this service he was 
most revered by our mythological an- 
cestors. 

In an account of a feast given in Val- 
halla to the dead heroes of many battles, 
Saehrimnir, a sacred boar, was served. 
Huge pieces were apportioned to the de- 
ceased heroes and the meat had such a re- 
vivifying effect that, restored to life, they 
called for arms and began to fight their 
battles over again. 

An abundance of heavenly mead made 
from goats' milk and honey was provided 
for the feasts and on occasions ale, too, 
was served. 

Toasts were usually drunk in honor of 
Bragi, god of poetry, eloquence, and song. 
The gods pledged themselves to perform 
[19] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

remarkable deeds of courage and valor as 
they tossed off horn after horn of mead 
and ale. Each time their mighty valor 
grew until there was no limit set to their 
attainments. It is possible that their 
boastful pledges may have given rise to 
the term, to brag. 

Apples were the favorite fruit, as they 
prevented the approach of age and kept 
the gods and goddesses perpetually young 
and vigorous. 

Certainly Yule-tide was a very merry 
season among the ancient people who 
feasted, drank, and danced in honor of 
the return of the sun, the god of light and 
new life. 

When messengers went through the va- 
rious countries bearing tidings of a new 
religion and of the birth of a Son who 
brought light and new life into the whole 
world, they endeavored to retain as many 
[20] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

of the established customs as possible, but 
gave to the old-time festivals a finer char- 
acter and significance. 

As the fact of Christ's birth was not 
recorded and there was no certainty as to 
its date, the early Christian Fathers very 
wisely ascribed it to Yule-tide, changing 
the occasion from the birthday of the ^tm 
to that of the ^on. For a while the birth 
of Christ was celebrated on dates varying 
from the first to the sixth of January ; on 
the dates of certain religious festivals such 
as the Jewish Passover or the Feast of 
Tabernacles ; but the twenty-fifth of De- 
cember, the birthday of the sun, was ever 
the favorite date. 

Pope Julius, who reigned from 337 to 
352 A. D., after a careful investigation, 
considered it settled beyond doubt that 
Christ was born on or about the twenty- 
fifth of December, and by the end of the 
[21] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

fifth century that date was very generally 
accepted by Christians. The transition 
from the old to the new significance of 
Yule-tide was brought about so quietly 
and naturally that it made no great im- 
pression on the mind of the masses, so 
nothing authentic can be learned gf the 
early observance of Christmas. 

The holly, laurel, mistletoe, and other 
greens used by the Druids still served as 
decorations of the season, not as a shelter 
for fairies, as in former days, but as em- 
blems of resurrection and of immortal 
hope. 

The glorious luminary of day, whether 
known as Balder, Baal, Sol, or any other 
of the innumerable names by which it 
was called by the primitive peoples, still 
gladdens the hearts of mortals at Yule- 
tide by " turning-back " as of old ; only 
to-day it yields its place to a Superior 
[22] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

Power, in whose honor Yule-tide is ob- 
served. 

All Christendom owes a debt of grati- 
tude to its pagan forbears for the pleas- 
ant features of many of its holidays and 
especially for those of Yule-tide. The 
Fathers of the early church showed rare 
wisdom in retaining the customs of these 
ante-Christian festivals, imbuing them 
with the spirit of the new faith and mak- 
ing them emblematic of a purer love and 
hope. / 

New Year's Day as a feast day is one 
of the oldest, if not the oldest, on record. 
It is mentioned by Tacitus in the First 
Century, but first referred to as a Chris- 
tian festival about the year 567. 

In Rome the day was dedicated by 
Numa to the honor of god Janus, for 
whom Julius Csesar named the month ■ 
[23] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

of January. Numa ordained that it 
should be observed as a day of good-hu- 
mor and good-fellowship. All grudges 
and hard feelings were to be forgotten. 
Sacrifices of cake, wine, and incense were 
to be made to the two-faced god who 
looked forward and backward. Men of 
letters, mechanics, and others were ex- 
pected to give to the god the best they 
had to offer of their respective arts. It 
was the great occasion of the entire year, 
as it is now in many countries. 

The date of New Year's Day has varied 
among different nations. Among the 
Egyptians, Chinese, Jews, and Romans it 
has been observed on dates varying from 
March first to December twenty-fifth. It 
was as late as the Sixteenth Century be- 
fore the date of January first was uni- 
versally accepted as the New Year by the 
Romans. Nations retaining the Grego- 
[24] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

riaii calendar, such as Russia and Greece, 
observe it thirteen days later than those 
who reckon time by the Julian cal- 
endar. 

Among northern nations the love of 
fire and light originated the custom of 
kindling bonfires to burn out the old year 
and destroy all evil connected with its 
past. Light has long been an expression 
of joy and gladness among all branches 
of the Aryan race. 

The Greek and Latin Churches still 
term Christmas the " Feast of Lights," 
and make it a period of brilliancy in 
Church and home. The Protestant covers 
the Christmas tree with lighted candles 
and builds a glowing fire on the hearth. 
The innate love of light and warmth — the 
inheritance from the sun-worshipers of 
ages past — is always dominant in human- 
ity at Yule-tide festivals. 
[25] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

'' The King of Light, father of aged Time, 
Hath brought about that day which is the 

prime, 
To the slow-gliding months, when every eye 
Wears symptoms of a sober jollity, 
And every hand is ready to present 
Some service in a real compliment." 



KING OLAF'S CHEISTMAS 

At Drontheim, Olaf the King 
Heard the bells of Yule-tide ring, 

As he sat in his banquet-hall, 
Drinking the nut-brown ale, 
With his bearded Berserks hale 

And tall. 

Three days his Yule-tide feasts 
He held with Bishops and Priests, 

And his horn filled up to the brim ; 
But the ale was never too strong, 
Nor the Saga-man's tale too long, 

For him. 

O'er his drinking-horn, the sign 
He made of the cross divine, 

As he drank, and muttered his prayers ; 
But the Berserks evermore 
Made the sign of the Hammer of Thor 

Over theirs. 



[26] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

The gleams of tlie firelight dance 
Upon helmet and haubert and lance, 

And laugh in the eyes of the King ; 
And he cries to Halfred the Scald, 
Gray-bearded, wrinkled, and bald, 

''Sing!'' 

** Sing me a song divine, 
With a sword in every line. 

And this shall be thy reward." 
And he loosened the belt at his waist, 
And in front of the singer placed 

His sword. 

*^ Quern-bitter of Hakon the Good, 
Wherewith at a stroke he hewed 

The millstone through and through. 
And Foot-breadth of Thoralf the Strong, 
Were neither so broad nor so long, 

Nor so true.'' 

Then the Scald took his harp and sang, 
Aud loud through the music rang 

The sound of that shining word ; 
And the harp-strings a clangor made. 
As if they were struck with the blade 

Of a sword. 

And the Berserks round about 
Broke forth in a shout 

That made the rafters ring 5 

[27] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

They smote with their fists on the board, 
And shouted, " Long live the sword, 
And the King." 

But the King said, ' ' O my son, 
I miss the bright word in one 

Of thy measures and thy rhymes." 
And Halfred the Scald replied, 
" In another 't was multiplied 

Three times." 

Then King Olaf raised the hilt 
Of iron, cross-shaped and gilt, 

And said, '' Do not refuse ; 
Count well the gain and the loss, 
Thor's hammer or Christ's cross : 

Choose!" 

And Halfred the Scald said, "This 
In the name of the Lord I kiss, 

Who on it was crucified ! " 
And a shout went round the board, 
^ ' In the name of Christ the Lord, 

Who died!" 

Then over the waste of snows 
The noonday sun uprose, 

Through the driving mists revealed, 
Like the lifting of the Host, 
By incense-clouds almost 

Concealed. 

[28] 



YULE-TIDE OF THE ANCIENTS 

On the shining wall a vast 
And shadowy cross was cast 

From the hilt of the lifted sword, 
And in the foaming cups of ale 
The Berserks drank '■ ' Was-hael ! 
To the Lord ! " 

— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.. 



[29 




CHAPTER II. 
YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

'' Christians in old time did rejoice 
And feast at this blest tide." 

— Old Carol. 

""VTO country has entered more heartily 
-^ ^ into Yule-tide observance than 
England. From the earliest known date 
her people have celebrated this festival 
[30] 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

with great ceremony. In the time of the 
Celts it was principally a religious ob- 
servance, but this big, broad-shouldered 
race added mirth to it, too. They came to 
the festivities in robes made from the skins 
of brindled cows, and wearing their long 
hair flowing and entwined with holly. 

The Druids in the temples kept the 
consecrated fires burning briskly. All 
household fires were extinguished, and 
any one wishing to rekindle the fiame at 
any time during the twelve days preced- 
ing Yule-tide must buy the consecrated 
fire. The Druids also had a rather unique 
custom of sending their young men 
around with Yule-tide greetings and 
branches of mistletoe {quiviscum). Each 
family receiving this gift was expected in 
return to contribute generously to the 
temples. 

With the coming of the Saxons, higher 
[31] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

revelry reigned, and a Saxon observance 
of Yule-tide must have been a jolly sight 
to see. In the center of the hall, upon 
the open hearth, blazed a huge fire with 
its column of smoke pouring out through 
an opening in the thatched roof, or, if 
beaten by the wind, wandering among the 
beams above. The usually large family 
belonging to the house gathered in this big 
living-room. The table stretched along 
one side of the room, and up and down 
its great length the guests were seated in 
couples. Between them was a half-biscuit 
of bread to serve as a plate. Later on this 
would be thrown into the alms-basket for 
distribution among the poor. 

Soon the servers entered carrying long 
iron spits on which they brought pieces of 
the meats, fish, and fowls that had been 
roasted in isen pannas (iron pans) sus- 
pended from tripods out in the yard. 
[32] 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

Fingers were used instead of forks to 
handle the food, and the half-biscuit 
plates received the grease and juices and 
protected the handsome bord-cloth. 

There was an abundance of food, for 
the Saxons were great eaters. Besides 
flesh, fish, and fowls their gardens fur- 
nished plenty of beans and other vege- 
tables, and their ort-geards produced rasp- 
berries, strawberries, plums, sweet and 
sour apples, and cod-apples, or quinces. 
The cider and stronger drinks were 
quaffed from quaint round-bottomed tum- 
blers which, as they could not stand up, 
had to be emptied at a draught. 

The Saxons dined at about eleven 
o'clock and, as business was not press- 
ing in those days, could well afford to 
spend hours at the feast, eating, drinking, 
and making merry. 

After every one had eaten, games were 
[33] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

plaj^ed, and these games are the same as 
our children play to-day — handed down 
to us from the old Saxon times. 

When night came and the ear-thyrls 
(eyeholes, or windows) no longer admitted 
the light of the sun, long candlesticks 
dipped in wax were lighted and fastened 
into sockets along the sides of the hall. 
Then the makers, or bards as they came 
to be called in later days, sang of the 
gods and goddesses or of marvelous deeds 
done by the men of old. Out-of-doors 
huge bonfires burned in honor of Mother- 
Night, and to her, also, peace oflPerings of 
Yule cakes were made. 

It was the Saxon who gave to the heal- 
all of the Celts the pretty name of mistle- 
toe, or mistletan, — meaning a shoot or 
tine of a tree. There was jollity beneath 
the mistletoe then as now, only then 
everybody believed in its magic powers. 
[34] 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

It was the sovereign remedy for all dis- 
eases, but it seems to have lost its cura- 
tive power, for the scientific men of the 
present time fail to find that it possesses 
any medical qualities. 

Later on, when the good King Alfred 
was on the English throne, there were 
greater comforts and luxuries among the 
Saxons. Descendants of the settlers had 
built halls for their families near the 
original homesteads, and the wall that 
formerly surrounded the home of the 
settler was extended to accommodate the 
new homes until there was a town 
within the enclosure. Yule within these 
homes was celebrated with great pomp. 
The walls of the hall were hung with 
rich tapestries, the food was served on 
gold and silver plates, and the tumblers, 
though sometimes of wood or horn, were 
often of gold and silver, too. 
[35] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

In these days the family dressed more 
lavishly. Men wore long, flowing ring- 
lets and forked beards. Their tunics of 
woolen, leather, linen, or silk, reached to 
the knees and were fastened at the waist 
by a girdle. Usually a short cloak was 
worn over the tunic. They bedecked 
themselves with all the jewelry they could 
wear ; bracelets, chains, rings, brooches, 
head-bands, and other ornaments of gold 
and precious stones. 

Women wore their best tunics made 
either of woolen woven in many colors 
or of silk embroidered in golden flowers. 
Their " abundant tresses," curled by 
means of hot irons, were confined by the 
richest head-rails. The more fashionable 
wore cuffs and bracelets, earrings and 
necklaces, and painted their cheeks a 
more than hectic flush. 

In the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Cen- 
[36] 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

turies the magnificence of the Yule-tide 
observance may be said to have reached 
its height. In the old baronial halls 
where : 

'^ The fire, with well-dried logs supplied, 
Went roaring up the chimney wide," 

Christmas was kept with great jollity. 

It was considered unlucky to have the 
holly brought into the house before 
Christmas Eve, so throughout the week 
merry parties of young people were out 
in the woods gathering green boughs, 
and on Christmas Eve, with jest and 
song, they came in laden with branches 
to decorate the hall. 

*' Lo, now is come our joyfulPst feast 1 
Let every man be jolly, 
Eache room with yvie leaves be drest, 
And every post with holly." 

Later on, men rolled in the huge Yule- 
log, emblematic of warmth and light. 
[37] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

It was of oak if possible, the oak being 
sacred to Thor, and was rolled into place 
amidst song and merriment. In one of 
these songs the first stanza is : 

" Welcome be thou, heavenly King, 
Welcome born on this morning, 
Welcome for whom we shall sing, 
Welcome Tule.'" 

The third stanza is addressed to the 

crowd : 

" Welcome be ye that are here, 
Welcome all, and make good cheer, 
Welcome all, another year ; 
Welcome Yule.^' 

Each member of the family, seated in 
turn upon the log, saluted it, hoping to 
receive good luck. It was considered 
unlucky to consume the entire log during 
Yule ; if good luck was to attend that 
household during the coming twelve 
months, a piece ought to be left over 
with which to start the next year's fire. 
[38] 




Seren ded by the Waits. 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

'* Part must be kept wherewith to tende 
The Christinas log next yeare, 
And where 'tis safely kept, the fiend 
Can do no mischiefe theere." 

The boar's head held the principal 
place of honor at the dinner. So during 
September and October, when the boar's 
flesh was at its best, hunters with well- 
trained packs of boar-hounds set out to 
track this savage animal. They attacked 
the boar with spears, or surrounded him 
and drove him into nets. He was a fero- 
cious antagonist to both dogs and men, 
and when sore pressed would wheel 
about, prepared to fight to the death. 
Before the dogs could grip him by 
the ear, his one weak point, and pin 
him down, his sharp teeth would often 
wound or even kill both the hunter 
and his dogs. The pluckier the animal 
the louder the praise sung in his honor 
when his head was brought into the halL 
[39] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

The great head, properly soused, was borne 
in on an immense salver by the " old 
blue-coated serving-man " on Christmas 
day. He was preceded by the trumpeters 
and followed by the mummers, and thus 
in state the boar's head was ushered in 
and assigned to its place on the table. 
The father of the family or head of the 
household laid his hand on the dish con- 
taining the " boar of atonement," as it 
was at one time called, swearing to be 
faithful to his family and to fulfil all 
his obligations as a man of honor. 
This solemn act was performed be- 
fore the carving by every man pres- 
ent. The carver had to be a man of 
undaunted courage and untarnished rep- 
utation. 

Next in honor at the feast was the pea- 
cock. It was sometimes served as a pie 
with its head protruding from one side 
[40] 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

of the crust and its wide-spread tail from 
the other ; more often the bird was 
skinned, stuffed with herbs and sweet 
spices, roasted, and then put into its skin 
again, when with head erect and tail out- 
spread it was borne into the hall by a 
lady — as was singularly appropriate — 
and given the second place on the 
table. 

The feudal system gave scope for much 
magnificence at Yule-tide. At a time 
when several thousand retainers^ were fed 
daily at a single castle or on a baron's es- 
tate, preparations for the Yule feast — the 
great feast of the year — were necessarily 
on a large scale, and the quantity of 
food reported to have been prepared on 
such occasions is perfectly appalling to 
Twentieth-Century feasters. 

Massinger wrote : 

^ The Earl of Warwick had some thirty thousand. 

[41] 



YULE-TIDE IK MANY LANDS 

" Men may talk of Country Ohristmasses, 
Their thirty-pound butter'd eggs, their pies 

of carp's tongue, 
Their pheasants drench' d with ambergris, 

the carcasses 
Of three fat wethers bruis'd for gravy, to 
Make sauces for a single peacock ; yet their 

feasts 
Were fasts, compared with the City's." 

In 1248 King Henry III held a feast 
in Westminster Hall for the poor which 
lasted a week. Four years later he enter- 
tained one thousand knights, peers, and 
other nobles, who came to attend the 
marriage of Princess Margaret with Alex- 
ander, King of the Scots. He was gener- 
ously assisted by the Archbishop of York 
who gave £2700, besides six hundred fat 
oxen. A truly royal Christmas present 
whether extorted or given of free will ! 

More than a century later Richard II 
held Christmas at Litchfield and two 
thousand oxen and two hundred tuns of 
[42] 



YULE-TIDE 11^ ENGLAND 

wine were consumed. This monarch was 
accustomed to providing for a large 
family, as he kept two thousand cooks to 
prepare the food for the ten thousand per- 
sons who dined every day at his expense. 
Henry VIII, not to be outdone by his 
predecessors, kept one Yule-tide at which 
the cost of the cloth of gold that was 
used alone amounted to £600. Tents 
were erected within the spacious hall 
from which came the knights to joust 
in tournament ; beautiful artificial gar- 
dens were arranged out of which came 
the fantastically dressed dancers. The 
Morris (Moresque) Dance came into vogue 
in England during the reign of Henry 
VII, and long continued to be a favorite. 
The dancers were decorated from crown 
to toe in gay ribbon streamers, and cut all 
manner of antics for the amusement of the 
guests. This dance held the place at Yule 
[43] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

that the Fool's Dance formerly held dur- 
ing the Roman Saturnalia. 

Henry VII's daughter, Elizabeth, kept 
the season in great magnificence at Hamp- 
ton Court where plays written for the 
occasion were presented. The poet Her- 
rick favored : 

" Of Christmas sports, the wassell boule, 
That's tost up after Pox-i-th'-hole." 

This feature of Yule observance, which 
is usually attributed to Rowena, daughter 
of Vortigern, dates back to the grace-cup 
of the Greeks and Romans which is also 
the supposed source of the bumper. Ac- 
cording to good authority the word bumper 
came from the grace-cup which Roman 
Catholics drank to the Pope, au bon Pere. 
The wassail bowl of spiced ale has con- 
tinued in favor ever since the Princess 
Rowena bade her father's guests Wassheil. 

The offering of gifts at Yule has been 
[44] 



YULE-TIDE m ENGLAND 

observed since offerings were first made 
to the god Frey for a fruitful year. In 
olden times one of the favorite gifts re- 
ceived from tenants was an orange stuck 
with cloves which the master was to hang 
in his wine vessels to improve the flavor 
of the wine and prevent its moulding. 

As lords received gifts from their ten- 
ants, so it was the custom for kings to re- 
ceive gifts from their nobles. Elizabeth 
received a goodly share of her wardrobe 
as gifts from her courtiers, and if the 
quality or quantity was not satisfactory, 
the givers were unceremoniously informed 
of the fact. In 1561 she received at Yule 
a present of a pair of black silk stockings 
knit by one of her maids, and never after 
would she wear those made of cloth. 
Underclothing of all kinds, sleeves richly 
embroidered and bejeweled, in fact every- 
thing she needed to wear, were given to 
[45] 



YULE-TIDE m MAI^Y LANDS 

her and she was completely fitted out at 
this season. 

In 1846 Sir Henry Cole is said to have 
originated the idea of sending Christmas 
cards to friends. They were the size of 
small visiting-cards, often bearing a small 
colored design — a spray of holly, a flower, 
or a bit of mistletoe — and the compli- 
ments of the day. Joseph Crandall was 
the first publisher. Only about one thou- 
sand were sold the first year, but by 1862 
the custom of sending one of these pretty 
cards in an envelope or with gifts to 
friends became general and has now 
spread to other countries. 

During the Reformation the custom of 
observing Christmas was looked upon as 
sacrilegious. It savored of popery, and 
in the narrowness of the light then dawn- 
ing the festival was abolished except in 
the Anglican and Lutheran Churches. 
[46] 



YULE-TIDE IN ENGLAND 

Tenants and neighbors no longer gath- 
ered in the hall on Christmas morning 
to partake freely of the ale, blackjacks, 
cheese, toast, sugar, and nutmeg. If they 
sang at all, it was one of the pious hymns 
considered suitable — and sufficiently dole- 
ful — for the occasion. One wonders if 
the young men ever longed for the sport 
they used to have on Christmas morning 
when they seized any cook who had neg- 
lected to boil the hackin'^ and running 
her round the market-place at full speed 
attempted to shame her of her laziness. 

Protestants were protesting against the 
observance of the day ; Puritans were 
working toward its abolishment ; and 
finally, on December 24, 1652, Parlia- 
ment ordered " That no observance shall 
be had of the fi.ve and twentieth day of 

^ Authorities differ as to whether this was a big sausage or 
a plum pudding. 

[47] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

December, commonly called Christmas 
day ; nor any solemnity used or exer- 
cised in churches upon that day in re- 
spect thereof." 

Then Christmas became a day of work 
and no cheer. The love of fun which 
must find vent was expended at New 
Year, when the celebration was similar 
to that formerly observed at Christmas. 
But people were obliged to bid farewell 
to the Christmas Prince who used to rule 
over Christmas festivities at Whitehall, 
and whose short reign was always one 
of rare pleasure and splendor. He and 
other rulers of pastimes were dethroned 
and banished from the kingdom. Yule 
cakes, which the feasters used to cut in 
slices, toast, and soak in spicy ale, were 
not to be eaten — or certainly not on 
Christmas. It was not even allowable for 
the pretty Yule candles to be lighted. 
[48] 



YULE-TIDE IN EIS:GLAIfD 

Christmas has never regained its former 
prestige in England. Year after year it 
has been more observed in churches and 
families, but not in the wild, boisterous, 
hearty style of olden times. Throughout 
Great Britain Yule-tide is now a time of 
family reunions and social gatherings. 
Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and the Islands 
each retain a few of their own peculiar 
customs, but they are not observed to 
any extent. In Ireland — or at least in 
some parts — they still indulge in drink- 
ing what is known as Lamb's-wool, which 
is made by bruising roasted apples and 
mixing the juice with ale or milk. This 
drink, together with apples and nuts, is 
considered indispensable on Christmas 
Eve. 

England of all countries has probably 
known the merriest of Yule-tides, cer- 
tainly the merriest during those centuries 
[49] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

when the mummers of yore bade to each 
and all 

' ' A merry Christmas and a happy New Year, 
Your pockets full of money and your cellar 
full of beer." 

There seems always to have been more 
or less anxiety felt regarding New Year's 
Day in England, for " If the morning be 
red and dusky it denotes a year of robber- 
ies and strife." 

"If the grass grows in Janivear 
It grows the worse for 't all the year." 

And then very much depended upon the 
import of the chapter to which one opened 
the Bible on this morning. If the first 
visitor chanced to be a female, ill luck 
was sure to follow, although why it 
should is not explained. 

It was very desirable to obtain the 
" cream of the year " from the nearest 
[50] 



YULE-TIDE IK^ ENGLAND 

spring, and maidens sat up till after 
midnight to obtain the first pitcherful 
of water, supposed to possess remarkable 
virtues. Modern plumbing and city 
water-pipes have done away with the ob- 
servance of the " cream of the year," al- 
though the custom still prevails of sitting 
up to see the Old Year out and the New 
Year in. 

There was also keen anxiety felt as to 
iiow the wind blew on New Year's Eve, 
for 

'' If New Year's Eve night wind blow South, 
It betokeneth warmth and growth ; 
If West, much milk, and fish in the sea ; 
If North, much cold and storm there will be ; 
If East, the trees will bear much fruit ; 
If Northeast, flee it man and brute." 

AT CHEI8TMAS TIME 

At Christmas time the fields are white, 

And hill and valley all bedight 
With snowy splendor, while on high 

[51] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

The black crows sail athwart the sky, 
Mourning for summer days gone by 
At Christmas time. 

At Christmas time the air is chill, 

And frozen lies the babbling rill : 

While sobbingly the trees make moan 

For leafy greenness once their own, 

For blossoms dead and birdlings flown 

At Christmas time. 

At Christmas time we deck the hall 

With holly branches brave and tall, 
With sturdy pine and hemlock bright, 
And in the Yule-log's dancing light 
We tell old tales of field and fight 
At Christmas time. 

At Christmas time we pile the board 

With flesh and fruit and vintage stored, 
And mid the laughter and the glow 
We tred a measure soft and slow, 
And kiss beneath the mistletoe 
At Christmas time. 

O God and Father of us all, 

List to Thy lowliest creature's call : 
Give of Thy joy to high and low, 
Comforting the sorrowing in their woe ; 
Make wars to cease and love to grow 
At Christmas time. 

[52] 



YULE-TIDE m ENGLAND 

Let not one heart be sad to-day ; 

May every child be glad and gay : 
Bless Thou Thy children great and small, 
In lowly hut or castle hall, 
And may each soul keep festival 
At Christmas time. 



THE NEW YEAE 

** A good New Year, with many blessings in it ! " 
Once more go forth the kindly wish and word. 
A good New Year ! and may we all begin it 
With hearts by noble thought and purpose 
stirred. 

The Old Year's over, with its joy and sadness ; 
The path before us is untried and dim ; 
But let us take it with the step of gladness, 
For God is there, and we can trust in Him. 

What of the burled hopes that lie behind us ! 
Their graves may yet grow flowers, so let them 

rest. 
To-day is ours, and it must find us 
Prepared to hope afresh and do our best. 

God Jcnows what finite wisdom only guesses ; 
Not here from our dim eyes the mist will roll. 
What we call failures, He may deem successes 
Who sees in broken parts the perfect whole. 

[53] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

And if we miss some dear familiar faces, 
Passed on before us to the Home above, 
Even while we count, through tears, their va 

cant places. 
He heals our sorrows with His balm of Love. 

No human lot is free from cares and crosses, 
Each passing year will bring both shine and 

shower ; 
Yet, though on troubled seas life's vessel tosses, 
The storms of earth endure but for an hour. 

And should the river of our happy laughter 
Flow 'neath a sky no cloud yet overcasts, 
We will not fear the shadows coming after. 
But make the most of sunshine while it lasts. 

A good New Year ! Oh, let us all begin it 

With cheerful faces turning to the light ! 

A good New Year, which will have blessings 

in it 
If we but persevere and do aright. 

— E. Matheson. 



[54] 




etiAPTER ffl. 

YULE-TIDE IN GERMANY 

" Feed the wood and have a joyful minute, 
For the seeds of earthly suns are in it." 

— Goethe. 

TT was away back in the time of Alex- 
■*■ ander the Great that Germany was 
made known to the civilized world by an 
adventurous sailor named Pytheas, a 
man of more than ordinary talent, who 
[55] 



YULE-TIDE IS MANY LANDS 

was sailing northward and discovered a 
land inhabited by a then unknown 
people. He reported his discovery to 
the Romans, but the difficulty was that 
Pytheas had seen so much more than 
any of the Greeks or Romans of those 
days that they utterly refused to believe 
his statements. Time has proved that 
the sailor was nearer right in many of 
his apparently visionary statements than 
his countrymen dreamed, although it 
has taken centuries to prove the fact in 
some cases. 

The people whom Pytheas then intro- 
duced to the polite world were Teutons, 
a branch of the great Aryan race and 
closely related to the early English. 
The men were simple, truthful, and 
brave, but were sadly addicted to drink, 
it was said, and consequently were often 
quarrelsome. The women were much 
[56] 



YULE-TIDE m GEEMANT 

like those of to-day in their character- 
istics : virtuous, proud, and dignified ; 
very beautiful, with golden-hued hair, 
blue eyes, and fresh, fair complexions. 
Like most of the early peoples, the 
Teutons worshiped gods and goddesses, 
and so have many customs and tradi- 
tions in common with other branches of 
the Aryans. 

If England has enjoyed the merriest 
Yule-tides of the past, certainly Germany 
enjoys the merriest of the present, for in 
no other country is the day so fully and 
heartily observed. It is the great occa- 
sion of the year and means much to the 
people. 

For a week or more before the day, 
loads of evergreen trees of all sizes may 
be seen coming into the cities and towns 
to be piled up in squares and open places 
until the entire place looks like a forest 
[57] 



YULE-TroE IN MANY LANDS 

of small firs. One wonders where they 
all come from and for how many years 
the supply will last, but it is not likely 
to fail at present. 

The Lutherans gave Martin Luther the 
credit of introducing the Christmas tree 
into Germany. He may have helped to 
make it popular, but certainly there is 
abundant evidence to prove that it was 
known long before the Reformer's time. 
It is generally supposed to have its origin 
in mythological times and to be a vestige 
of the marvelous tree, Yggdrasil. 

Possibly Martin Luther thought of the 
old story of the tree and imagined, as he 
traveled alone one cold night, how pretty 
the snow-laden fir-trees along his path 
would look could they be lighted by the 
twinkling stars overhead. But whether 
he had anything to do with it or not, the 
tree is now one of the most important 
[58] 



YULE-TIDE IN GEEMANT 

features of Yule-tide among the Germans 
of all denominations. 

Nearly ten million households require, 
one or two trees each Christmas, varying 
in height from two to twenty feet. Socie- 
ties provide them for people who are too 
poor to buy them, and very few are over- 
looked at this happy holiday season. 

The grand Yule-tide festival is opened 
on the eve of St. Nicholas Day, December 
sixth ; in fact bazaars are held from the 
first of the month, which is really one 
prolonged season of merrymaking. 

In Germany, St. Nicholas has a day 
set apart in his honor. He was born in 
Palara, a city of Lycia, and but very 
little is known of his life except that 
he was made Bishop of Myra and died in 
the year 343. It was once the custom 
to send a man around to personate St. 
Nicholas on St. Nicholas Eve, and to 
[59] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

inquire how the children had behaved 
through the year, who were deserving 
of gifts, and who needed a touch of the 
birch rods that he carried with him 
into every home. St. Nicholas still goes 
about in some parts of the country, 
and in the bazaars and shops are sold 
little bunches of rods, real or made of 
candy, such as St. Nicholas is supposed 
to deal in. In some places Knight 
Rupert takes the place of St. Nicholas in 
visiting the houses. But Kriss Kringle 
has nearly usurped the place St. Nicholas 
once held in awe and respect by German 
children. 

Because St. Nicholas Day came so near 
to Christmas, in some countries the Saint 
became associated with that celebration, 
although in Germany the eve of his birth- 
day continues to be observed. Germans 
purchase liberally of the toys and confec- 
[60] 




Toy-making in Germany. 

How the rough figures are chipped from the wooden ring coming 
from the cross-section of a tree, 



YULE-TIDE m GEEMANY 

tionery offered at the bazaars, and no- 
where are prettier toys and confectionery 
found than in Germany — the country 
which furnishes the most beautiful toys 
in the world. 

From the palace to the hut, Yule-tide 
is a season of peace, rest, joy, and devo- 
tion. For three days, that is the day be- 
fore Christmas, Christmas, and the day 
after — known as Boxing-day — all business 
not absolutely necessary to the welfare 
of the community is suspended. Stores, 
markets, and bazaars present a festive ap- 
pearance ; the young girl attendants are 
smiling and happy, and every one seems 
in the best of humor. 

Many of the poorer class of Germans 
do not eat much meat, but at Christmas 
all indulge in that extravagance, so the 
markets are unusually crowded. They 
all like to purchase a plant or a flower for 
[61] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

Christmas and the flower stores are mar- 
vels of beauty and sweetness. 

Every one is busy preparing for the 
great occasion. Grown folks become chil- 
dren again in the simplicity of their enjoy- 
ment and enter into the excitement with 
as much enthusiasm as do the children. 

Newspapers are not generally published 
during the three days of business suspen- 
sion, for no one would have time or in- 
terest to read them at such a season. 

In many places churches are open dur- 
ing the week before Christmas, for with 
all the bustle and excitement incident to 
the preparations, the people, j^oung and 
old, are filled with a deep spirit of devo- 
tion, and never for an instant forget the 
significance of the occasion they com- 
memorate. 

Churches are not trimmed nor are they 
made attractive with flowers, songs, or in 
[62] 



YULE-TIDE IN GEEMAIS^Y 

any special way, but the people go to lis- 
ten with devotion to the telling of the 
old, old story of Christ's birthday and of 
the first Holy Night at Bethlehem. 

The day before Christmas all are busy 
trimming up their homes and preparing 
for the great day. Usually the mother 
of the household trims the tree, not ad- 
mitting any other member of the curious 
and expectant family into the room. Ta- 
bles are provided for holding the gifts, as 
every one in the family is expected to 
make a gift to every other member, and 
it is surprising to note the interest taken 
in these simple gifts — often a soap-rose, 
an artificial flower, knitted lace, even 
sausages, cheese, or butter — and with each 
and all the ever-present Christmas cake. 
It is spiced and hard, cut into every man- 
ner of device — men, women, animals, 
stars, hearts, etc. The Pfeffer Kuchen 
[63] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

(pepper cakes) or some similar cakes are 
to be seen everywhere at Christmas time. 

The gifts are often accompanied with 
short verses, good, bad, or indifferent, ac- 
cording to the talent of the giver, but all 
serve to make the occasion merry. In 
some families these simple inexpensive 
gifts are so carefully kept that collections 
may be seen of gifts received by different 
members of the family since their infancy. 

On Christmas Eve the guests assemble 
early, and by six o'clock a signal is given 
for the door of the mysterious room to be 
opened to admit the family to the tree : 

" O Hemlock-tree ! O Hemlock-tree ! how faith- 
ful are thy branches ! 
Green not alone in summer time, 
But in the winter's frost and rime ! 
O Hemlock-tree ! O Hemlock-tree ! how faith- 
ful are thy branches ! ' ' 

It is ablaze with tiny lighted tapers and 

radiant with shiny tinsel cut in pretty 

[64] 




Decorating the Christmas Tree. 



YULE-TIDE IN GEEMANY 

devices or in thread-like strips. Bright 
balls, gay toys, and paper flowers help to 
enhance its beauty, and sometimes scenes 
from sacred history are arranged with toys 
at the base of the tree. 

With the distribution of the gifts the 
fun begins ; each person is expected to 
kiss every other person present and help 
make the occasion a merry one. 

Holy Night, or, as the Germans term 
it, Weihnacht — the Night of Dedication — ^^ 
is the time of family reunions, fun, and 
frolic. Not alone in homes, hospitals, 
prisons, barracks, and elsewhere is the 
pretty betinseled tree to be seen on 
Christmas, but in burying-grounds, on 
the resting-places of the dead, stand these 
fresh green trees in evidence of keeping 
the loved one's memory green. 

While the custom of having a tree is 
universal throughout Germany, and from 
[65] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

thence has been introduced into other 
countries, there are many customs pecul- 
iar to certain sections. In some of the 
little out-of-the-way places in the Tyrolese 
Alps the old-time Miracle Plays are en- 
acted in a most primitive manner. As 
the peasants rarely, if ever, attend the 
theatre or have any opportunity to see a 
modern play, this occasion attracts them 
from far and near. Where is the theatre, 
who are the actors, do you ask ? The 
theatre is the largest place available, 
sometimes a large room, sometimes a 
barn, anything that will accommodate 
the crowd that is sure to come. In one 
description of a play given on Christmas 
Day it is stated that the people assembled 
in a barn belonging to the vicarage to 
witness the Paradise Play. The top of a 
huge pottery stove at least five feet high 
served for the throne of God the Father, 
[66] 



YULE-TIDE m GERMANY 

the stove being hidden by screens painted 
to represent clouds. The play " began 
at the beginning," — at Chaos. A large 
paper screen bedecked with a profusion 
of suns, moons, stars, and comets formed 
a background, while in front sprawled a 
number of boys in tights with board 
wings fastened to their shoulders to repre- 
sent angels. The language was as simple 
and primitive as the scenery, yet for the 
credulous, devout peasants " no distance 
is too great, no passes too steep or rough, no 
march on dusty highroads too fatiguing, 
if a Miracle or Passion Play is their goal." 
Does it seem sacrilegious ? Not to 
those who attend it in the spirit of hu- 
mility and devotion, as do these Tyrolese 
peasants. In some places plays are given 
in churches on Christmas as they were 
formerly in England, but these are not 
common, and are only found in remote 
[67] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

places. Throughout this country there is 
always a church service in the morning 
which is very generally attended, Protes- 
tants and Catholics alike making Christ- 
mas the day of all the year in which they 
attend church. 

The name Christmas probably origi- 
nated from the order that was given for 
saying mass (called Christ-mass) for the 
sins of the people on the day that com- 
memorates the Saviour's Birth. 

One beautiful feature of a German 
Christmas is the wide-spread thought for 
the poor and the interest taken in them. 
Many wealthy families have charge of a 
certain number of poor families, and on 
Christmas Day invite them to their own 
luxurious homes to receive gifts and enjoy 
the tree prepared for them. An address, 
prayer, and song as they stand around 
the tree precedes the distribution of gifts, 
[68] 



"Xi 



YULE-TIDE IN GEEMANY 

usually of clothing and food, with which 
the guests fill the bags and baskets they 
bring with them. And for all there is an 
abundance of Pfeffer Kuchen, or some other 
Christmas cake. 

In the midst of all the excitement of 
lighted tree and pretty gifts, German 
children seldom forget to return thanks 
for what they receive. They are taught 
that all these gifts come through the 
Christ-child, and that the occasion is not 
for selfish enjoyment but to give pleasure 
to others, and that no one is too poor to 
give kindly thought and pleasant words 
to those around them. 

In some parts of Germany — Lorraine 
is one — the people burn the Yule-log ; 
sometimes a huge log that will last 
through the three days' festivity, some- 
times one so small that the family sit 
before it until it is all consumed. Some- 
[69] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

times a part of the log is suspended from 
the ceiling of the room and each person 
present blows at it hoping to make a 
spark fall on some watching face ; then 
again some carry a piece of the log to bed 
with them to protect them from light- 
ning. But the Yule-log is not very gen- 
erally known in this land of great pottery 
stoves and closed fireplaces, and that may 
be one reason why post-wagons go rum- 
bling about at Christmas time, carrying 
parcels from place to place and from door 
to door, blowing their post-horns con- 
tinuously, instead of the parcels being 
dropped down chimneys by Santa Glaus. 
It is customary, also, in some parts of 
the country, for the people and their 
animals to fast the day before Christmas. 
At midnight the people attend church 
and it is said that the cattle Jcneel; then 
both man and beast partake of a hearty 
[70] 



YULE-TIDE m GEEMANY 

meal. There are places in the German 
Alps where it is believed that the cattle 
are blessed with the gift of language for 
a while on Christmas Eve, but as it is a 
very great sin to listen, no one has yet 
reported any conversation among them. 
In another part of the country it is 
thought that the Virgin Mary with a 
company of angels passes over the land 
on Holy Night, and so tables are spread 
with the best the larders afford and 
candles are lighted and left burning that 
the angelic visitors may find abundant 
food should they chance to stop on their 
way. 

Boxing-day, when boxes prepared for 
the poor are distributed, follows the Holy 
Day and after that business is resumed, 
although festivities do not cease. 

Sylvester, or New Year's Eve, is the 
next occasion to be observed during Yule- 
[71] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

tide. The former name was given in 
honor of the first pope of that name, and 
still retained by many. After the usual 
church service in the early evening, the 
intervening hours before midnight are 
spent in the most boisterous merriment. 
Fun of all sorts within the limit of law 
and decency prevails. Any one ventur- 
ing forth wearing a silk hat is in dan- 
ger of having his hat, if not his head, 
smashed. " Hat off," cries the one who 
spies one of these head-coverings, and if 
the order is not instantly obeyed, woe 
betide the luckless wearer. At midnight 
all Germany, or at least all in the cities 
and the larger towns, may be seen out-of- 
doors or leaning from windows, waiting 
for the bells to ring out the Old Year 
and welcome in the New. At first stroke 
of the bells there arises one universal sa- 
lute of Prosit Neujahr (Happy New Year). 
[72] 



YULE-TIDE IN GEEMANY 

It is all good-natured fun, a wild, exu- 
berant farewell to the Old Year— the 
closing scene of the joyous Yule-tide. 

THE OHEISTMAS TEEE 

The oak is a stroug and stalwart tree, 

And it lifts its branches up, 
And catches the dew right gallantly 

In many a dainty cup : 
And the world is brighter and better made 

Because of the woodman's stroke. 
Descending in sun, or falling in shade, 

On the sturdy form of the oak. 
But stronger, I ween, in apparel green. 

And trappings so fair to see, 
"With its precious freight for small and great, 

Is the beautiful Christmas tree. 

The elm is a kind and goodly tree, 

With its branches bending low : 
The heart is glad when its form we see, 

And we list to the river's flow. 
Ay, the heart is glad and the pulses bound. 

And joy illumes the face, 
Whenever a goodly elm is found 

Because of its beauty and grace. 
But kinder, I ween, more goodly in mien, 

[73] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

With branches more drooping and free, 
The tint of whose leaves fidelity weaves, 
Is the beautiful Christmas tree. 

— Hattie 6'. Hussell. 



[74] 




CHAPTER IV: 
YULE-TIDE IN SGANDINAVR 

The horn was blown for silence, come was the 

votive hour ; 
To Frey's high feast devoted they carry in 

the boar. 

— Frithof^s ^^Saga,^^ Trans. Bayard Taylor. 

"nr^O Norroway, to Norroway," the most 

-■- northern limit of Scandinavia, one 

turns for the first observance of Christmas 

in Scandinavia, for the keeping of Yule- 

[75] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

tide in the land of Odin, of the Vikings, 
Sagas, midnight sun, and the gorgeous 
Aurora Borealis. This one of the twin 
countries stretching far to the north with 
habitations within nineteen degrees of 
the North Pole, and the several countries 
which formed ancient Scandinavia, are 
one in spirit regarding Christmas al- 
though not in many other respects. 

In the far north among the vast tribe 
of Lapps, in their cold, benighted country, 
as Christmas approaches each wandering 
tribe heads its reindeer toward the nearest 
settlement containing a church, that it 
may listen to the story of the first Christ- 
mas morn which is told year after year by 
the pastor, and yet is ever new and inter- 
esting to the people who come from great 
distances, drawn over the fields of crisp 
snow by their fleet-footed reindeer. 

The Lapp is apparently a joyless indi- 
[76] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

vidual. Men, women, and children seem 
bereft of all power of amusement beyond 
what tends to keep them alive, such as 
fishing, hunting, and traveling about to 
feed their herds of reindeer. They have 
no games, no gift for music, they never 
dance nor play cards, but year after year 
drag out an existence, living within low 
earth-covered huts or in tents. Even the 
best homes are low and poorly ventilated. 
For windows are not needed where dark- 
ness reigns for months together, where 
the sun is not seen at all during six or 
seven weeks of the year, and where people 
live out-of-doors during the long summer 
day of sunlight that follows. 

In their low, stuffy homes which at 
Christmas are filled with guests from the 
wandering Lapps, there is no room for the 
pretty tree and decorative evergreens. 
The joy afforded these people at Yule-tide 
[77] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

is in the reunion of friends, in attending 
church services, in the uniting of couples 
in marriage, and, alas, in the abundance 
of liquor freely distributed during this 
season. The children are made happy by 
being able to attend school, for at Christ- 
mas they are brought into the settlements 
with friends for this purpose. They have 
only a few weeks' schooling during the 
year, from Christmas to Easter, and while 
the schoolmasters are stationed at the 
little towns, the children work hard to 
gain the knowledge of books and religion 
which they crave. 

In this terrible winter night of exist- 
ence, amidst an appalling darkness of 
Nature and Mind, the one great occasion 
of the year is Christmas. Not the merry, 
bright, festive occasion of their more fa- 
vored brothers and sisters, but what to 
them is the happiest in the year. 
[78] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

Christmas Eve passes unnoticed. The 
aurora may be even more beautiful than 
usual, its waving draperies more fantastic, 
more gorgeous-hued, but it is unnoticed 
by the Lapps who have seen it from child- 
hood. Men, women, children, servants, 
guests, and animals, crowd into the small, 
low homes, without a thought of Santa 
Claus coming to visit them. Children 
have no stockings to hang up, and there 
are no chimneys for Santa to descend. In 
fact, he and his reindeer, with their loads 
of treasured gifts, probably left this region 
with the sun, bound for more congenial 
places. 

The church bells break the terrible si- 
lence of the sunless towns on Christmas 
morning, and as the fur-encased natives 
wend their way to church, greeting one 
another as they meet, there is a faint ap- 
proach to joyousness. Of course there 
[79] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

mast be real sorrow and joy wherever 
there is life and love, although among the 
Lapps it is hard to discern. 

During Yule-tide the Lapps visit one 
another, attend to what governmental 
business there may be, give in marriage, 
christen the children, and bury the dead, 
whose bodies have lain beneath their cov- 
ering of snow awaiting this annual visit 
of the Norwegian clergyman for their 
final interment. 

Think of Christmas without a tree, 
without wreaths and flowers, without 
stockings full of gifts, with a dinner of 
reindeer meat and no plum pudding 1 
And imagine what would be his sensation 
could a Lapp child be put into a home in 
England, America, Germany, or even in 
other parts of Scandinavia I What would 
he say could he receive such gifts as were 
given you last Christmas ! 
[80] 




On the Way to Christmas "Eve Service in Norway. 



YULE-TIDE m SCANDINAVIA 

But Lapps are only a small part of the 
population of Norway. Norwegian chil- 
dren have many jolly times around the 
Christmas trees and enjoy hunting for 
their little gifts which are often tucked 
away in various places for them to find. 
Then there are all sorts of pretty games 
for them to play and quantities of appe- 
tizing food prepared for their pleasure. 
The young folks earn their feast, for all 
day long before Christmas they are busy 
tying bunches of oats and corn on the 
trees, the fences, the tops of houses and 
of barns, and on high poles which they 
erect in the yards, until 

'' From gable, barn and stable 
Protrudes the birdies' table 
Spread with a sheaf of corn. " 

The Norwegians begin their Christmas 
with divine services, after which they 
meet together for a repast which is an ap- 
[81] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

petizer for the feast to follow. A pipe of 
tobacco is given to each man and boy 
present, then they smoke while the feast, 
the great feature of the day, is being 
made ready. Fish, poultry, meats, and 
every variety of food known to the Nor- 
wegian housewife is served in courses, 
between which toasts are given, healths 
drunk, and the songs of Norway rendered. 
Among the latter " Old Norway " is al- 
ways included, for the people never for- 
get the past history of their beloved 
country. 

One of the pretty customs of these occa- 
sions is that each guest on arising turns 
to the host and hostess, who remain seated 
at either end of the table, and, bowing to 
each, expresses his thanks for the meal. 

Sometimes after the serving of tea 
at seven o'clock, little boys in white 
mantles, with star-shaped lanterns and 
[82] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

dolls to represent the Virgin and the 
Holy Babe, enter the room and sing sweet 
carols. Often strolling musicians arrive, 
such as go from place to place at Christ- 
mas. After a large supper the guests de- 
part on sledges for their homes, which 
are often miles distant. 

Do you suppose on Christmas Eve, 
as they look toward the fading light in 
the West, the children of Norway ever 
think of their Scandinavian cousins, the 
little Icelanders, in their peat houses, on 
that isolated island in the sea, where the 
shortest day is four hours long, and where 
at Christmas time the sun does not rise 
above the horizon for a week, and wonder 
how they are celebrating Yule-tide ? 

Christmas is a great day with them also, 
for they cling to the old songs and cus- 
toms, and could the west wind convey the 
sound of glad voices across the wide ex- 
[83] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

panse of water separating the island from 
the mainland, Norwegian children might 
hear the Icelandic children singing one 
of their sweet old songs. 

'' Wlieii I do good and think aright 
At peace with man, resigned to God, 
Thou look'st on me with eyes of light, 
Tasting new joys in joy's abode." 

In Sweden there is a general house- 
cleaning before Christmas ; everything 
must be polished, scrubbed, beaten, and 
made clean, and all rubbish burned, for 
dirt, like sinful thoughts, cannot be toler- 
ated during the holy festival. 

As early as the first of December each 
housewife starts her preparations for the 
great day. Many have worked all the 
year making gifts for the occasion, but 
now the carpets must come up and be 
beaten, the paint must be cleaned, and the 
house set in order. The silver which has 
[84] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

been handed down from generation to 
generation, together with that received 
on holidays and birthdays, has to be 
cleaned and polished, so must the brasses 
— the tall fire-dogs, the stately andirons, 
and the great kettles — all must be made 
to reflect every changing ray of light. 

Then the baking for a well-ordered 
household is a matter of great moment, 
and requires ample time. It is usual to 
begin at least two weeks before Christmas. 
Bread is made of wheat and rye flour, 
raised over night, then rolled very thin 
and cut into discs twelve or fourteen 
inches in diameter, with a hole in the 
center. After having been baked, these 
are strung on a stick and left to dry under 
the beams of the baking-room. As they 
will keep a long while, large quantities are 
made at this season in each household. 

Then follows the making of sweetened, 
[85] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

soft, rye, wheat, and other breads, as well 
as the baking of the light yellow (saffron), 
the chocolate-brown, and thin gray-col- 
ored cakes, and those that are filled with 
custard. 

The preparing of Christmas drinks al- 
ways requires the close attention of good 
dames, for there must be an inexhaustible 
supply of Christmas beer, made of malt, 
water, molasses, and yeast, and wine with 
almonds and spices, and various other de- 
coctions. 

Then the cheese must be made ready, 
not only the usual sour kind, but the 
more delicious sweet cheese that is made 
of sweet milk boiled slowly for hours and 
prettily moulded. 

The Swedish wife is relieved of the bur- 
den of making pies, as her people know 
nothing about that indigestible mixture 
so acceptable to American palates. 
[86] 



YULE-TIDE m SCANDINAVIA • 

The festivities begin with the dressing 
of the tree the day before Christmas. In 
this the older members of the family, with 
friends and relatives, join with great gusto, 
preparing paper flowers with which^to be- 
deck the tall evergreen tree which reaches 
from floor to ceiling. 

They cut long ribbons of colored paper 
for streamers, and make yards of paper 
fringe to wind with the tinsel among the 
boughs, from which are hung bright col- 
ored boxes of sweetmeats, fruit, and fancy 
balls. 

The children are, of course, excluded 
from the room and obliged to content 
themselves with repeating the tales of 
Santa Glaus, as told by their elders. 
When a gift is offered in person, or, as is 
more generally the case, is thrown in the 
door suddenly by an unseen hand, there 
rings a merry Glad Frill (Good Yule) 
[87] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

meaning " Merry Christmas," for that is 
the wish of the preceding day or days, 
rather than of Christmas itself 

On Christmas Eve at early nightfall, 
when the colored candles are ablaze over 
the entire tree, and the great red ball of 
light shines from its topmost branches, 
the children are admitted to the room 
amidst a babel of shouts and screams of 
delight, which are increased upon the 
arrival of a veritable Santa Claus be- 
strewn with wool-snow and laden with 
baskets of gifts. On the huge sled are 
one or more baskets according to the 
number of bundles to be distributed in 
the family. Each bundle bears the name 
of the owner on its wrapper, together with 
funny rhymes and mottoes, which are 
read aloud for the amusement of all. 
Santa Claus always gives an abundance 
of valuable counsel and advice to the 
[88] 



YULE TIDE m SCAKDIl^fAVIA 

young folks as he bestows upon them 
his pretty gifts. 

After the distribution of gifts and the dis- 
appearance of Santa Claus, all join in danc- 
ing and singing around the tree simple, 
childish jingles such as the following : 

'' Now is Christmas here again, 
Now is Christmas here again, 
After Christmas then comes Easter, 
Cheese and bread and Christmas beer, 
Fish and rice and Christmas cheer ! 
—etc." 

One of the prettiest dances is that of 
''-Cutting the Oats," in which girls and 
boys — there must be an extra boy — dance 
in a circle, singing : 

''Cut the oats, cut the oats, 
Who is goiDg to bind them ■? 
That my dearest will have to do, 
But where will I find him? 

"I saw him last eve in the moonlight, 
In the moonlight clear and bright, 
So you take one and I'll take one, 
And he will be left without one." 

[89] 



YULE-TIDE IE MANY LANDS 

The boys represent the cutters and the 
girls the oats, and great merriment pre- 
vails as the cutters' arms encircle the 
waists of the pretty oats, leaving the un- 
fortunate cutter, whom they all dance 
around, bowing scoffingly as they shout : 

" No one did want you, 

Poor sprite, no one wants you, 
You are left alone, 
You are left alone." 

Many of their games are similar to 
"Blind Man's Buff," "Hunt the Key," 
and " Hot and Cold," or " Hunt to the 
Music," the latter being one which by its 
modulations from pianissimo to forte in- 
dicate the hunters' nearness to the object 
sought for. The game of " Blind Feed- 
ing the Blind " causes much amusement 
among the juveniles; two players sit op- 
posite each other blindfolded and en- 
deavor to feed one another with spoon- 
[ 90 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

fuls of milk, and their mishaps are very 
entertaining to the on-lookers. 

Between the hours of ten and eleven 
comes the grand Christmas supper, when 
all adjourn to the dining-room to partake 
of the annual feast for which the house- 
wives have long been preparing. The 
table is usually tastefully and often elab- 
orately trimmed with flowers and green 
leaves. The comers of the long snow- 
white homespun cloth are caught up 
into rosettes surrounded with long calla 
or other leaves ; possibly the entire edge 
of the table is bedecked with leaves and 
flowers. The butter is moulded into a 
huge yellow rose resting on bright green 
leaves, and the napkins assume marvel- 
ous forms under the deft fingers of the 
artistic housewives. 

The Christmas mush holds the first 
place in importance among the choice 
[91] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

viands of the occasion ; it is rice boiled a 
long while in milk and seasoned with salt, 
cinnamon, and sugar, and is eaten with 
cream. Several blanched almonds are 
boiled in the mush and it is confidently 
believed that whoever finds the first 
almond will be the first to be married. 
While eating the mush, each one is ex- 
pected to make rhymes about the rice and 
the good luck it is to bring them, and the 
most remarkable poetical effusions are in 
order on these occasions. 

The Christmas fish is to the Swede what 
the Christmas roast-beef is to the English- 
man, an indispensable adjunct of the fes- 
tival. The fish used resembles a cod ; it is 
buried for days in wood ashes or else it is 
soaked in soda water, then boiled and 
served with milk gravy. Bread, cheese, 
and a few vegetables follow, together with 
a pudding made of salt herrings, skinned, 
[92] 



YULE-TIDE m SCANDINAVIA 

boned, and cut in thin slices, which are 
laid in a dish with slices of cold boiled 
potatoes and hard-boiled eggs, covered 
with a dressing of cream, butter, and 
eggs — then baked and served hot. 

The fish, rice, and a fat goose are said 
to be served at every table on Christmas 
from that of the king to that of the com- 
monest of his subjects. 

Christmas morning opens with an early 
service in church, to which the older 
members of the family go in sled parties 
of from forty to fifty sleds, each drawn by 
one, two, or even three horses, over whose 
backs jingle rows of silver-toned bells. 
The sled parties are an especial feature of 
Christmas time. They start out while the 
stars are still twinkling in the sky, and 
the lighted trees are illuminating the 
homes they pass. 

The day itself is observed with less hi- 
[93] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

larity than other days during the season ; 
the " Second Christmas," or day following, 
being far gayer. Then begin the family 
parties, with the looking forward to the 
great Twelfth-Night ball, after which the 
children and young folks end their even- 
ing parties by untrimming the tree of 
their entertainer amidst peals of laughter, 
songs, and shouts. 

The tree, of course, has been supplied 
anew with candles, fruit, and candy. 
The first are blown out and the last two 
struggled for while the tree is drawn 
slowly toward the door out of which it is 
finally pitched by the merry crowd. 

The Swedes have four legal holidays at 
Yule, beginning the day previous to 
Christmas, and they make merry while 
they last. Besides having the Jul-gran 
or Christmas tree, each family places in 
the yard a pole with a sheaf of grain on 
[94] 



YULB-TIDB IN SCANDINAVIA 

top for the birds' Christmas dinner, a 
pretty custom common to many countries. 

Business is very generally suspended 
during Christmas, the day following, 
Twelfth Day, and the twentieth day. 

" Do as your forefathers have done, and 
you can't do wrong," is said to be the 
motto of the Swedes. So the customs of 
their forefathers are strictly observed at 
Yule-tide. 

Svea^ the feminine name of Sweden, 
the " Queen of the North," contains what 
is popularly believed to be the burial- 
places of Wodin, Thor, and Freya. The 
mounds are about one mile from Upsala 
and are visited by travelers from all parts 
of the world. Antiquarian researchers, 
however, have recently had a word to 
say in doubt whether these mounds con- 
tain the remains of the renowned beings, 
those ancient travelers. The Swedes, 
[95] 



YULE-TIDE m MAI:^Y LANDS 

however, still cling to the belief that the 
bones of Wodin, the Alexander of the 
North, rest beneath the sod at Upsala. 
In these mounds have been found the 
bones of a woman and of a dog, a bracelet 
of filigree work, and a curious pin shaped 
like a bird, but no sign of Wodin's pres- 
ence. Yet peasants believe that Wodin 
passes by on dark nights, and his horse's 
shoe, with eight nail-holes, is exhibited in 
the museum at Utwagustorp. 

New Year's Day is of comparatively 
little importance ; the Christmas trees 
are usually relighted for the enjoyment 
of the poorer children and gifts are 
made to the needy. The Yule fes- 
tivities are prolonged for two weeks in 
many places, during which the people 
visit from home to home and enjoy many 
social pleasures. The devout attend 
church services each day, abandon all 
[96] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

work so far as possible, and on January 
thirteenth generally finish up the joyous 
season with a ball. 

The Swedes do not trim their churches 
with evergreen at Yule-tide as that is an 
emblem of mourning with them, and is 
used instead of crape on the door and 
often strewn before the hearse and also 
upon the floor in the saddened homes, so of 
course at Christmas they would not think 
of using it for decorations. But where 
they can afford it or can procure them, 
they use flowers to decorate their homes. 

In Denmark, Christmas is a time of un- 
usual merriment and rejoicing. No one 
who can possibly avoid it works at all 
from the day before Christmas until after 
New Year, but spends the time in visiting, 
eating, and drinking. " May God bless 
jT'Our Christmas ; may it last till Easter," 
is the usual salutation of the season. 
[97] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

With the people of Denmark the fa- 
vorite dish for Christmas dinner is a 
goose ; every one, even the cattle, the 
dog, and the birds, receive the best the 
larder affords on this occasion. There 
is a peculiar kind of cake that is made 
for each member of every family, and, 
for some reason not explained, the salt- 
cellar remains on the table throughout 
Yule-tide. 

Those who own fruit-trees feel it in- 
cumbent upon them to go at midnight on 
Christmas Eve and with a stick in hand 
strike each tree three times saying as 
they do so, " Rejoice, O Tree, — rejoice and 
be fruitful." 

In Denmark it is believed by many 
that the cattle rise on their knees at mid- 
night on Christmas Eve, but no one ever 
seems to have proved this saying to be 
true. 

[98] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

In this country also the children de- 
light in listening to stories of trolls who 
have been driven to the island of Born- 
hern by the parsons although they once 
ran riot through Zealand, and the little 
folks sing pretty songs of Balder, the sun 
god, which are a special feature of the 
season. 

It is customary to usher in the New 
Year with a noise of firearms of every 
description. 

THE CHRISTMAS SHEAF 

Far over in Norway's distant realm, 

That land of ice and snow, 
"Where the winter nights are long and drear, 

And the north winds fiercely blow, 
From many a low-thatched cottage roof. 

On Christmas eve, 'tis said, 
A sheaf of grain is hung on high. 

To feed the birds o'erhead. 

In years gone by, on Christmas eve. 

When the day was nearly o'er, 
Two desolate, starving birds flew past 

A humble peasant's door. 

[ 99 ] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

^' Look ! Look ! " cried one, with joyful voice 

And a piping tone of glee : 
'^ In that sheaf there is plenteous food and cheer, 
And the peasant had but three. 
One he hath given to us for food, 
And he hath but two for bread, 
But he gave it with smiles and blessings, 
' For the Christ- child's sake,' he said." 

'' Come, come," cried the shivering little mate, 
' ' For the light is growing dim ; 
'Tis time, ere we rest in that cosy nest, 

To sing our evening hymn. " 
And this was the anthem they sweetly sang. 
Over and over again : 
'' The Christ- child came on earth to bless 
The birds as well as men." 

Then safe in the safe, snug, warm sheaf they 
dwelt. 
Till the long, cold night was gone. 
And softly and clear the sweet church bells' 

Eaug out on the Christmas dawn. 
When down from their covert, with fluttering 
wings. 
They flew to a resting-place. 
As the humble peasant passed slowly by, 
With a sorrowful, downcast face. 
"Homeless and friendless, alas ! am I," 
They heard him sadly say, 

[100] 



YULE-TIDE IN SCANDINAVIA 

^' For the sheriff," (he wept and wrung his 
hands) 
" Will come on New Year's day." 

The birdlings listened with mute surprise. 
" 'Tis hard," they gently said ; 
*' He gave us a sheaf of grain for food. 

When he had but three for bread. 
We will pray to God, He will surely help 

This good man in distress ; " 
And they lifted their voices on high, to crave 

His mercy and tenderness. 
Then again to the Christmas sheaf they flew, 

In the sunlight, clear and cold : 
" Joy ! joy ! each grain of wheat," they sang, 
*' Is a shining coin of gold." 

*' A thousand ducats of yellow gold, 
A thousand, if there be one ; 
O master ! the wonderful sight behold 

In the radiant light of the sun." 
The peasant lifted his tear-dimmed eyes 
To the shining sheaf overhead ; 
" 'Tis a gift from the loving hand of God, 

And a miracle wrought," he said. 
" For the Father of all, who reigneth o'er, 
His children will ne'er forsake, 
When they feed the birds from their scanty 
store. 
For the blessed Christ-child's sake." 

[101] 



YULE TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

'^ The fields of kindness bear golden grain," 
Is a proverb true and tried ; 
Then scatter thine alms, with lavish hand. 

To the waiting poor outside ; 
And remember the birds, and the song they 
sang, 
"When the year rolls round again : 
** The Christ-child came on earth to bless 
The birds as well as men. " 

— Mrs. A. M. Tomlinson. 



[102] 




CHAPTER V. 
YULE-TIDE IN RUSSIA 

"Light — in the heavens high, 
And snow flashing bright ; — 
Sledge in the distance 
In its lonely flight. " 

— 8he7isMn. 

TN this enormous kingdom which covers 

-*' one-sixth of the land surface of the 

globe, and where upwards of fifteen mil- 

[103] 



YULB-TIDB IN MANY LANDS 

lion human beings celebrate in various 
ways the great winter festival of Yule- 
tide, it will be found that the people 
retain many traditions of the sun- wor- 
shipers, which shows that the season was 
once observed in honor of the renewal of 
the sun's power. With them, however, 
the sun was supposed to be di female, who, 
when the days began to lengthen, entered 
her sledge, adorned in her best robes and 
gorgeous head-dress, and speeded her 
horses summerward. 

Russian myths indicate a connection 
with the Aryans in the remote past ; 
their songs of the wheel, the log, the pig 
or boar, all show a common origin in 
centuries long gone by. 

Russia to most minds is a country of 
cold, darkness, oppression, and suffering, 
and this is true to an altogether lamen- 
table extent. But it is also a country of 
[104] 



YULE-TIDE IN EUSSIA 

warmth, brightness, freedom, and happi- 
ness. In fact, there are so many phases 
of life among its vast population that de- 
scriptions of Russian life result about 
as satisfactorily as did those of Saxe's 
" Three blind men of Hindustan," who 
went to see the elephant. Each traveler 
describes the part he sees, just as each 
blind man described the part he felt, and 
each believes he knows the whole, 
^..i-^here are certain general features of the 
Yule-tide observance that are typical of 
the country. One is the singing of their 
ancient Kolyada songs, composed cen- 
turies ago by writers who are unknown. 
They may have been sa^crificial songs in 
heathen days, but are now sung with 
fervor and devotion at Christmas time. 

In some places a maiden dressed in 
white and drawn on a sledge from house 
to house represents the goddess of the 
[105] 



YULE-TIDE IN MA.NY LANDS 

Sun, while her retinue of maidens sing 
the Kolyada, or carols. Here again ap- 
pears the ancient custom of gift-making, 
for the maidens who attend the goddess 
expect to receive gifts in appreciation of 
their songs. 

The word Kolyada is of doubtful origin. 
It may refer to the sun, a wheel, or a 
sacrifice ; there is no telling how, when, 
or where it originated, but the singing of 
these songs has been a custom of the 
people from time immemorial, and after 
the introduction of Christianity it became 
a part of the Christmas festivities. 

Ralston in his '' Songs of the Russian 
People " gives the following translation 
of one of these peculiar songs : 

*' Kolyada ! Kolyada ! 
Kolyada has arrived. 
On the Eve of the Nativity, 

Holy Kolyada. 
Through all the courts, in all the alleys, 

[106] 



YULE-TIDE IN EUSSIA 

We found Kolyada 
In Peter's Court. 
Bound Peter's Court there is an iron fence, 
In tlie midst of the Court there are three 

rooms, 
In the first room is the bright Moon, 
In the second room the red Sun, 
And in the third room, the many Stars." 

Strangely enough the Russians make the 
Moon the master of the mansion above, 
and the Sun the mistress, a twist about in 
the conception of these luminaries worthy 
of the Chinese, and possibly derived from 
some of Russia's Eastern invaders. In 
the above song, the Stars, like dutiful 
children, all wish their luminous par- 
ents good health, 

" For many years, for many years." 

In parts of Russia, the Virgin Mary and 

birds take the place of the Sun and Stars 

in these songs, which are sung throughout 

the Yule season by groups of young folks 

[ 107 ] 



YULE-TIDE m MAinr LANDS 

at social gatherings, or from house to 
house, and form the leading feature of the 
Christmas festivities. 

It is hard to realize that the stolid, fur- 
clad Russian is a child of song, for such 
seem to belong to sunny climes, but 
throughout his life from the cradle to the 
grave he is accompanied with song. Not 
modern compositions, for they are quite 
inferior as a rule, but those melodies 
composed ages ago and sung repeatedly 
through generation after generation, usu- 
ally accompanied with dancing in cir- 
cles. 

The Kolyadki cover a variety of themes 
relating to the gods, goddesses, and other 
celestial beings, to all of whom Christian 
characteristics have been given until they 
now form the sacred songs of Yule-tide. 

On Christmas Eve it is customary for 
the people to fast until after the first serv- 
[108] 



YULE-TIDE m EUSSIA 

ice in church. They pray before their 
respective icons, or sacred pictures, recite 
psalms, and then all start for the church, 
where the service is, in most respects, the 
same as in the Roman Catholic Church. 
There are many denominations besides 
the established church of the country that 
hold services on Christmas Eve ; but to 
whichever one goes, it is wise to hasten 
home and to get to bed in season to have 
a pleasant Christmas Eve dream, as such 
is sure to come true, according to Russian 
authority. 

On Welikikdenj — Christmas — the people 
partake of an early meal. In some parts 
of the country it is customary to send ex- 
tremely formal invitations in the name 
of the host to the guests who are expected 
to arrive that day. These are delivered 
by a special messenger and read somewhat 
as follows : 

[ 109 ] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

" My master and mistress beg you to 
consider, Father Artanon Triphonowitsch, 
and you, Mother Agaphia Nelidowna, that 
for thousands of years it has been thus ; 
with us it has not commenced, with us it 
will not end. Do not, therefore, disturb 
the festival ; do not bring the good people 
to despair. Without you there will be no 
pleasure at Philimon Spicidonowitsch's, 
without you there will be no maiden fes- 
tival at Anna Karpowna's." 

Who could absent himself after such 
an invitation as this ? The place of meet- 
ing has been decided upon weeks earlier, 
for it must be with a well-to-do family 
possessing a large home to accommodate 
the guests that usually assemble at Christ- 
mas. The " fair maidens," each with her 
mother and retinue, arrive first on the 
scene, bringing cake and sweetmeats and 
gifts for the servants. They would sooner 
freeze in their sledges before the gate 
than be guilty of alighting without first 
[110] 



YULE TIDE IN EUSSIA 

receiving the greeting of their host and 
hostess. Having been welcomed, they 
next pray before the icon, and then are 
ready for the pleasures arranged for them. 

One peculiar phase of these house- 
parties is the selecting of partners for 
the maidens, which is done by the host- 
ess, the "elected" sometimes proving sat- 
isfactory and sometimes not. They feast, 
play games, go snowballing, and guess 
riddles, always having a jolly good time. 
Reciters of builinas (poems) are often 
present to sing and recite the whole 
night through, for of song and poetry 
the Russian never tires. 

A pretty custom very generally ob- 
served is the blessing of the house and 
household. The priest visits each home 
in his district, accompanied by boys bear- 
ing a vessel of holy water ; the priest 
sprinkles each room with the water, each 

[111] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

person present kissing the cross he carries 
and receiving his benediction as he pro- 
ceeds from room to room. Thus each 
home is sanctified for the ensuing year. 

The familiar greeting of " Merry Christ- 
mas " is not heard in Russia unless among 
foreigners, the usual salutation on this 
day being " Greetings for the Lord's 
birth," to which the one addressed re 
plies, " God be with you." 

The observance of New Year on Janu- 
ary first, according to the Gregorian Cal- 
endar, was instituted by Peter the Great 
in 1700. The previous evening is known 
as St. Sylvester's Eve, and is the time of 
great fun and enjoyment. According to 
the poet, Vasili Andreivich Zhukivski : 

*'St. Sylvester's evening hour, 
Calls the maidens round ; 
Shoes to throw behind the door, 
Delve the snowy ground. 

[112] 



YULE-TIDE IN EUSSIA 

Peep behind the window there, 
Burning wax to pour ; 
And the corn for chanticleer, 
Eeckon three times o'er. 
In the water-fountain fling 
Solemnly the golden ring 
Earrings, too, of gold ; 
Kerchief white must cover them 
While we're chanting over them 
Magic songs of old." 

Ovsen, a mythological being peculiar to 
the season, is supposed to make his entry 
about this time, riding a boar (another 
indication of Aryan descent), and no 
Christmas or New Year's dinner is con- 
sidered complete without pork served in 
some form. The name of Ovsen, being 
so like the French word for oats, suggests 
the possibility of this ancient god's sup. 
posed influence over the harvests, and the 
honor paid him at the ingathering feasts 
in Roman times. He is the god of fruit- 
fulness, and on New Year's Eve Russian 
[113] 



YULE-TIDE IS MANY LANDS 

boys go from house to house scattering 
oats and other grain while they sing : 

^* In the forest, in the pine forest, 
There stood a pine tree, 
Green and shaggy. 
O Ovsen ! Ovsen ! 
The Boyars came, 
Cut down the pine. 
Sawed it into planks, 
Built a bridge. 
Covered it with cloth. 
Fastened it with nails, 
O Ovsen ! O Ovsen 1 
"Who, who will go 
Along that bridge ? 
Ovsen will go there, 
And the New Year, 
O Ovsen ! O Ovsen ! " 

With this song the young folks endeavor 
to encourage the people who are about to 
cross the gulf between the known and the 
unknown, the Past and the Future Year ; 
at the same time they scatter good seed 
for them to reap a bountiful harvest. 
[114] 



YULE-TIDE m EUSSIA 

Often the boys sing the following Kol- 
yadki : 

'* Afield, afield, out in the open field ! 
There a golden plough goes ploughing, 
And behind that plough is the Lord Himself. 
Holy Peter helps Him to drive, 
And the Mother of God carries the seed corn, 
Carries the seed corn, prays to the Lord God, 
Make, O Lord, the strong wheat to grow, 
The strong wheat and the vigorous corn ! 
The stalks there shall be like reeds ! 
The ears shall be (plentiful) as blades of 

grass ! 
The sheaves shall be (in number) like the 

stars ! 
The stacks shall be like hills, 
The loads shall be gathered together like 

black clouds." 

How singularly appropriate it seems that 
boys, hungry at all times, should be the 
ones to implore the god of fruitfulness to 
bestow upon their people an abundant 
harvest during the coming year ! 

In Petrograd the New Year is ushered 
in with a cannonade of one hundred 
[115] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

shots fired at midnight. The Czar form- 
ally receives the good wishes of his sub- 
jects, and the streets, which are prettily 
decorated with flags and lanterns, are 
alive with people. 

On New Year's Day the Winter Palace 
is opened to society, as is nearly every 
home in the city, for at this season, at 
least, hospitality and charity are freely 
dispensed from palace and cottage. 

On Sotjelnik, the last of the holidays, 
the solemn service of Blessing the Water 
of the Neva is observed. At two o'clock 
in the afternoon the people who have 
gathered in crowds at various points 
along the river witness the ceremony 
which closes the festivities of Yule-tide. 
At Petrograd a dome is erected in front of 
the Winter Palace, where in the presence 
of a vast concourse of people the Czar 
and the high church officials in a grand 
[116] 



YULE-TIDE IN EUSSIA 

and impressive manner perform the cere- 
mony. In other places it is customary 
for the district priest to officiate. Clothed 
in vestments he leads a procession of 
clergy and villagers, who carry icons and 
banners and chant as they proceed to the 
river. They usually leave an open space 
in their ranks through which all the bad 
spirits likely to feel antagonistic to the 
ruler of Winter — the Frost King — may 
flee. For water sprites, fairies, gnomes, 
and other invisibilities, who delight in 
sunshine and warmth, are forced, through 
the power of the priest's prayers, and the 
showering of holy water, to take refuge 
in a hole that is cut in the ice beside a 
tall cross, and disappear beneath the cold 
water of the blessed river. 



[117] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

A PALM BEANOH FEOM PALESTINE 

Brancli of palm from Palestine, 
Tell me of thy native place : 
"What fair vale, what steep incline, 
First thy stately growth did grace ? 

Has the sun at dawn caressed thee, 
That on Jordan's waters shone. 
Have the rough night- winds distressed thee 
As they swept o'er Lebanon ? 

And while Solym's sons, brought low, 
Plaited thee for humble wages. 
Was it prayer they chanted slow, 
Or some song of ancient ages ? 

As in childhood's first awaking 
Does thy parent-tree still stand, 
With its full-leaved branches making 
Shadows on the burning sand ? 

Or when thou from it wert riven, 
Did it straightway droop and die, 
Till the desert dust was driven 
On its yellowing leaves to die ? 

Say, what pilgrim's pious hand 
Cherished thee in hours of pain, 
When he to this northern land 
Brought thee, fed with tears like rain ? 

[118] 



YULE-TIDE IN EU8SIA 

Or perchance on some good knight, 
Pare in heart and calm of vision, 
Men bestowed thy garland bright — 
Fit as he for realms Elysian 1 

Now preserved with reverent care, 
At the Ikon^s gilded shrine, 
Faithful watch thou keepest there, 
Holy Palm of Palestine. 

Where the lamp burns faint and dim, 
Folded in a mystic calm, 
Near the Cross — the sign of Him — 
Best in safety, sacred Palm. 
— Michael Yourievich Lermontov. 

(Translated by Mrs. Eosa Newmarch.) 



[119] 




CHAPTER VI. 
YULE-TIDE IN FRANCE 

" I hear along our street 
Pass the minstrel throngs ; 
Hark ! they play so sweet, 
On their hautboys, Christmas songs ! " 

— Carol. 

/^NE would naturally imagine that 

^-^ such a pleasure-loving people as the 

French would make much of Christmas, 

but instead of this we find that with 

[120] 



YULE-TIDE IN FEANCE 

them, excepting in a few provinces and 
places remote from cities, it is the least 
observed of all the holidays. 

It was once a very gay season, but now 
Paris scarcely recognizes the day except- 
ing in churches. The shops, as in most 
large cities, display elegant goods, pretty 
toys, a great variety of sweetmeats, and 
tastefully trimmed Christmas trees, for 
that wonderful tree is fast spreading over 
Europe, especially wherever the Anglo- 
Saxon and Teutonic races have settled. 

Confectioners offer a tempting supply 
of naulets — little delicate cakes — with a 
sugar figure of Christ on top, pretty boxes 
made of chocolate containing candy in the 
form of fruits, vegetables, musical instru- 
ments, and even boots and shoes, and all 
manner of quaint, artistic sugared devices, 
to be used as gifts or table decorations. 

Early in December, wooden booths and 
[ 121 ] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

open-air stands are erected throughout the 
shopping districts for the sale of Christ- 
mas goods. At night they are lighted, 
and through the day and evening they 
are gay with shoppers. Many of the 
booths contain evergreens and fresh green 
boughs for making the arbre de Nau. This 
is a hoop tied with bunches of green, in- 
terspersed with rosy apples, nuts, and 
highly colored, gaily ornamented egg- 
shells that have been carefully blown for 
the purpose. The hoops are hung in 
sitting-rooms or kitchens, but are used 
more in the country than in the cities. 

Although the cities are filled with 
Yule-tide shoppers and lovely wares, in 
order to enjoy a veritable Merry Christ- 
mas one must seek some retired town and 
if possible gain access to a home of ancient 
date, where the family keep the cus- 
toms of their ancestors. There he will 
[122] 



YULE-TEDE IN FEANOE 

find the day devoutly and solemnly 
observed, and legend and superstitions 
concerning every observance of the day. 
He will find that great anxiety is evinced 
regarding the weather during the twelve 
days preceding Christmas, as that por- 
tends the state of the weather for the en- 
suing twelve months. 

He will notice that unlike the Yule-logs 
of other countries, those of France are not 
to be sat on, for if by any chance a person 
sits on a Yule-log he will experience such 
pain as will prevent his partaking of the 
Christmas dinner. He will also find that 
the log has benevolent powers, and if his 
shoe is left beside it during the night it 
will be filled with peppermints or candy. 
The ashes of the log are believed to be a 
protection against lightning and bad luck, 
so some will be stored away beneath the 
bed of the master of the house as a means 
[123] 



YULE TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

of procuring good-fortune and other bless- 
ings during the coming year, and if he 
chance to fall sick, some of the ashes will 
probably be infused into his medicine 
and given to him. 

If the log, the cosse de Nau, is of oak and 
felled at midnight, it is supposed to be 
much more eflBcacious, therefore all who 
can do so procure an oaken log, at least. 
In some families where the Yule-log is 
lighted, it is the custom to have it brought 
into the room by the oldest and youngest 
members of the family. The oldest mem- 
ber is expected to pour three libations of 
wine upon the log while voicing an invo- 
cation in behalf of wealth, health, and 
general good-fortune for the household, 
after which the youngest member, be he a 
few days or a few months old, drinks to 
the newly lighted fire, — the emblem of 
the new light of another year. Each 
[124] 



YULE-TIDE IN FEANCE 

member present follows the example set by 
the youngest, and drinks to the new light. 

Yale-tide in France begins on St. Bar- 
bar's Day, December fourth, when it is 
customary to plant grain in little dishes 
of earth for this saint's use as a means of 
informing her devotees what manner of 
crops to expect during the forthcoming 
year. If the grain comes up and is flour- 
ishing at Christmas, the crops will be 
abundant. Each dish of fresh, green 
grain is used for a centerpiece on the 
dinner-table. 

For several days previous to Christ- 
mas, children go into the woods and 
fields to gather laurel, holly, bright ber- 
ries, and pretty lichens with which to 
build the creche, their tribute in com- 
memoration of the birth of Christ. It is 
a representation of the Holy Manger, 
which the little folks build on a table in 
[125] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LAliTDS 

the corner of the living-room. With bits 
of stones they form a hill, partly cover- 
ing the rocky surface with green and 
sometimes sprinkling it with flour to 
produce the effect of snow. On and 
about the hill they arrange tiny figures 
of men and beasts, and above the summit 
they suspend a bright star, a white dove, 
or a gilded figure of Jehovah. 

After the ceremony of lighting the 
Yule-log on Christmas. Eve, the children 
light up the creche with small candles, 
often tri-colored in honor of the Trinity. 
Throughout the work of gathering the 
material and making and lighting the 
creche, they sing carols in praise of the 
Little Jesus. In fact young and old 
accompany their Yule-tide labors with 
carols, such as their parents and grand- 
parents sang before them, — the famous 
Noels of the country. 

[126] 




A Christmas Tree in Paris. 



YULE-TIDE m FEANCE 

The children continue to light their 
creche each night until Epiphany, the 
family gathering around and joining in 
singing one or more of the well-known 
Noels, for 

'' Shepherds at the grange, 
Where the Babe was born, 
Sang, with many a change, 

Christmas carols until morn. 
Let us by the fire 
Ever higher 

Sing them till the night expires." 

On the eve of Epiphany the children 
all march forth to meet the Magi, who 
are yearly expected, but who yearly dis- 
appoint the waiting ones. 

The custom of hanging sheaves of 
wheat to the eaves of the houses for the 
birds' Christmas, so commonly observed 
throughout the cooler countries, is also 
observed by the children of France, and 
the animals are given especial care and 
[ 127 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

attention at this joyous season. Each 
house-cat is given all it can eat on Christ- 
mas Eve for if, by any chance, it mews, 
bad luck is sure to follow. Of course a 
great deal is done for the poorer class at 
Christmas ; food, clothing, and useful 
gifts are liberally bestowed, and so far as 
it is possible, the season is one of good 
will and good cheer for all. 

If the French still hold to many of the 
Christmas customs bequeathed them by 
their Aryan ancestors, New Year's Day 
shows the influence of their Roman con- 
querors, for a combination of Northern 
and Southern customs is noticeable on 
that occasion. Each public official takes 
his seat of office on that day, after the 
manner of the Romans. Family feast- 
ing, exchanging of gifts among friends, 
and merrymaking are features of New 
Year's Day rather than of Christmas in 
[128] 



YULE-TIDE IN FEANCE 

France, although children delight in 
placing their sabots, or shoes, on the 
hearth for the Christ-child to fill with 
gifts on Christmas Eve. 

In early times New Year's Day was the 
occasion of the Festival of Fools, when 
the wildest hilarity prevailed, and for 
upward of two hundred and forty years 
that custom continued in favor. Now 
Christmas is essentially the church festi- 
val ; New Year's Day is the social festival, 
and Epiphany is the oldest festival ob- 
served during Yule-tide in France. 

The latter festival is derived from the 
Roman Saturnalia, the main feature of 
the celebration being lawlessness and wild 
fun. Many of the features of former 
times are no longer in vogue, but the 
Twelfth-Night supper still continues in 
favor, when songs, toasts, and a general 
good time finishes the holiday season. 
[129] 



YULE-TIDE IN MAIO" LANDS 

December is really the month of song 
in France. From the first to the last 
every one who can utter a sound is singing, 
singing, singing. Strolling musicians go 
from house to house playing and singing 
Noels, and old and young of all classes in 
society, at home and abroad, on their way 
to church or to market, at work or at play, 
may be heard singing these fascinating 
carols. 

Noel signifies " good news," and it has 
been the greeting of the season since the 
earliest observance of Christmas. The 
word is on every tongue ; salutations, in- 
vocations, and songs begin and end with 
it. Carols peculiarly adapted to the day 
or season in time came to be known as 
Noels, and these songs are to be heard 
everywhere in France during the holidays 
of Yule-tide. 

[130] 



YULE-TIDE IN FEANCE 

CHEISTMAS SONG 
" Our Psalm of joy to God ascending 
Filleth our souls with Holy fame. 
This day the Saviour Child was born, 
Dark was the night that now is ending, 
But on the dawn were angels tending. 
Hail ! Christmas, Hail ! Christmas 
morn. 

" In faith we see thee, Virgin Mother, 
Still clasp thy Son, and in His eyes 
Seek Heaven's own light that in them lies. 
Though narrow shed His might confineth, 
Though low in manger He reclineth, 
Bright on His brow a glory shineth. 

*' Oh, Saviour King ! Hear when we call 

Thee, 
Oh, Lord of Angels, glorious the song. 
The song Thy ransom' d people raise. 
Would that our hearts from sin and 

sorrow 
And earthly bondage now might sever. 
"With Thee, Lord, reign forever and 

ever.'' 



[131] 




CHAPTER VE 
YULE-TIDE IN ITALY 

'■^ O'er mournful lands and bare, without a 
sound, 
Gently, in broadening flakes, descends 

the snow 
In velvet layers. Beneath its pallid glow, 
Silent, immaculate, all earth is bound." 

— Edmondo de Amicis. 



I 



TALY ! the land of Dante, Petrarch, 
Bocaccio, Raphael, Michelangelo, and 
[132] 



YULE-TIDE I:N^ ITALY 

a host of other shining lights in literature 
and art I 

Can we imagine any one of them as a 
boy watching eagerly for Christmas to ar- 
rive ; saving up money for weeks to pur- 
chase some coveted dainty of the season ; 
rushing through crowded streets on 
Christmas Eve to view the Bambino, and 
possibly have an opportunity to kiss its 
pretty bare toe ? How strange it all 
seems ! Yet boys to-day probably do 
many of the same things they did in the 
long ago during the observance of this 
holy season in historic, artistic Italy. 

In November, while flowers are yet in 
bloom, preparations are begun for the 
coming festivities. City streets and shops 
are crowded with Christmas shoppers, for 
beside all the gifts that are purchased by 
the Italians, there are those bought by 
travelers and foreign residents to be sent 
[133] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

to loved ones at home, or to be used in 
their own observance of the day, which is 
usually after the manner of their respect- 
ive countries. So shopping is lively from 
about the first of November until after the 
New Year. 

The principal streets are full of car- 
riages, the shops are full of the choicest 
wares, and it is to be hoped that the 
pocketbooks are full of money wherewith 
to purchase the beautiful articles dis- 
played. 

During the Novena, or eight days pre- 
ceding Christmas, in some provinces 
shepherds go from house to house inquir- 
ing if Christmas is to be kept there. If 
it is, they leave a wooden spoon to mark 
the place, and later bring their bagpipes 
or other musical instruments and play be- 
fore it, singing one of the sweet Nativity 
songs, of which the following is a favorite. 
[134] 



YULE-TIDE IN ITALY 

" For ever hallo w'd be 

The night when Christ was born, 
For then the saints did see 

The holy star of morn. 
So Anastasius and St. Joseph old 

They did that blessed sight behold." 

Chorus: (in which all present join) 
" When Father, Son and Holy Ghost unite 
That man may saved be." 

It is expected that those who have a 
presepio are ready by this time to receive 
guests to pray before it and strolling 
musicians to sing before it, for the pre- 
sepio is the principal feature of an 
Italian Christmas. It is made as ex- 
pensive as its owner can afford, and 
sometimes much more so. It is a min- 
iature representation of the birthplace 
of Christ, showing the Holy Family — 
Joseph, Mary, and the infant Jesus in 
the manger — or, more frequently, the 
manger awaiting the infant. This is a 
[135] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

doll that is brought in later, passed 
around that each person in the room 
may pray before it, and is then solemnly 
deposited in the manger. There are an- 
gels, and other figures several inches 
high, carved in wood — usually syca- 
more,^ — prettily colored and introduced 
to please the owner's taste ; the whole 
is artistically arranged to represent the 
scene at Bethlehem which the season com- 
memorates. When the festivities cease 
the presepio is taken apart and carefully 
stored away for use another year. 

During the Novena, children go about 
reciting Christmas pieces, receiving money 
from those who gather around them to 
listen, and later they spend their earn- 
ings in buying eels or some other sub- 
stantial delicacy of the season. 

The Cippo, or Yule-log, is lighted at 
two o'clock the day previous to Christ- 
[136] 



YULE-TIDE IN ITALY 

mas, on the kitchen hearth in provinces 
where it is sufficiently cold to have a 
hearth, and fires are lighted in other 
rooms, for here as elsewhere fire and 
light are necessary adjuncts of Christmas. 
During the twenty-four hours preceding 
Christmas Eve a rigid fast is observed, 
and there is an absence of Christmas 
cheer in the atmosphere, for the season 
is strictly a religious one rather than of 
a social nature like that of Northern 
countries. At early twilight candles are 
lighted around the presepio, and the little 
folks recite before it some poem suitable 
for the occasion. Then follows the ban- 
quet, made as elaborate as possible. The 
menu varies in different parts of the 
country, but in every part fish forms an 
important item of food. In many places 
a capon stuflPed with chestnuts is consid- 
ered indispensable, and the family purse 
[137] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

is often stretched to its utmost to provide 
this luxury, yet rich and poor deem this 
one article of food absolutely necessary 
on this occasion. Macaroni is of course 
the ever-present dish on all occasions 
throughout the country, and various 
sweetmeats are abundantly provided. 

Then comes the drawing of presents 
from the Urn of Fate, a custom common 
to many countries. As the parcels are 
interspersed with blanks, the drawing 
from the urn creates much excitement 
and no little disappointment among the 
children, who do not always understand 
that there will be a gift for each one not- 
withstanding the blanks. 

There is no evergreen used in either 
church or home trimmings, but flowers, 
natural or artificial, are used instead. 
Soon after nine o'clock the people, young 
and old, leave their homes for some 
[138] 




A Game of Loto on Christmas Evening in Naples. 



YULE-TIDE IN ITALY 

church in which the Christmas Eve 
services begin by ten o'clock. 

Bright holly-berries, sweet violets, 
stately chrysanthemums, and pretty 
olive-trees bedecked with oranges, — such 
as are bought by those accustomed to 
having a Christmas tree, — are displayed 
in shops and along the streets, nearly all 
of which are hung with bright lanterns. 
The people carry flaming torches to add 
to the general brightness of the evening, 
and in some cities fireworks are set off. 
From their sun-worshiping Aryan ances- 
tors Italy derives the custom of burning 
the ct]^^o, the love of light and fire, and 
many other customs. A few of these may 
be traced to Roman influence. Unfor- 
tunately many, very many, of the old cus- 
toms, once so generally observed through- 
out Italy, are now passing out of use. 

During the past few years several be- 
[139] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

nevolent societies have distributed pres- 
ents among the poor and needy at 
Christmas time, an event that is known 
as the Alhero di Natale — The Tree of 
Nativity, — but little boys and girls of 
Italy do not yet know the delight of 
having a real Christmas tree hung with 
lovely gifts, such as we have in Amer- 
ica. 

At sunset on Christmas Eve the boom- 
ing of cannon from the Castle of St. 
Angelo announces the beginning of the 
Holy Season. Papal banners are dis- 
played from the castle, and crowds wend 
their way toward St. Peter's, the object of 
every one's desire who is so fortunate as 
to be in Rome at this season, for there 
the service is the most magnificent in the 
world. Every Roman Catholic Church 
is crowded on Holy Night with men, 
women, and children, anxious to see the 
[140] 



YULE-TIDE nsT ITALY 

procession of church officials in their 
beautiful robes, who carry the Bambino 
about the church for the worshipers to 
behold and kiss its robes or its toe. The 
larger the church the more beautiful the 
sight generally, although to a Protestant 
beholder the smaller churches with their 
enforced simplicity often prove more sat- 
isfactory to the spirit of worship. 

But whether the officials are clothed in 
scarlet robes, ermine capes, and purple 
cassocks, and the walls covered with silken 
hangings of gold and crimson, with thou- 
sands of wax tapers lighted, and real 
flowers adorning the altar and organ 
pipes ; whether the Madonna on the left 
of the altar is attired in satin and gleam- 
ing with precious jewels, and the presepio 
on the right is a marvel of elegance, with 
the Bambino wrapped in gold and silver 
tissue studded with jewels ; or whether 
[141] 



TULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

all is of an humble, simple character ; 
the devout watch eagerly for the appear- 
ance of the Babe to be laid in the manger 
when the midnight bells peal forth the 
glad tidings of its birth. In each church 
the organ sounds its joyous accompani- 
ment to the sweet voices of the choir 
which sings the Magnificat. The music 
is in itself a rare treat to listeners as it is 
always the best, the very best that can be 
procured. At two o'clock on Christ- 
mas morning the Shepherds' Hymn is 
chanted, and at five o'clock the first High 
Mass is held. In some of the larger 
churches solemn vespers are held Christ- 
mas afternoon, when the Holy Cradle is 
carried around among the audience. 

At St. Peter's it is required that all the 

men present shall wear dress-suits and 

that the women be clothed in black, 

which offsets the brilliancy of the robes 

[ 142 ] 



YULE-TIDE m ITALY 

worn by the church officials, for even the 
guards on duty are in elegant red and 
white uniforms. About ten o'clock in 
the evening a procession of monks, 
priests, bishops, and cardinals, walking 
two and two, enters the vast building 
just as the great choir of male voices with 
organ accompaniment sounds forth the 
Magnificat. The procession is long, glow- 
ing in color, and very attractive to the 
eye, but the object of each Romanist's de- 
sire is to see the Pope, who, in magnifi- 
cent robes, and seated in his crimson 
chair, is borne aloft on the shoulders of 
four men clothed in violet. On the 
Pope's head gleams his richly gemmed 
tiara and his heavy robes sparkle with 
costly jewels. Waving in front of His 
Eminence are two huge fans of white 
ostrich feathers set with eyes of peacock 
feathers, to signify the purity and watch- 
[143] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

fulness of this highest of church func- 
tionaries. Before His Holiness march 
the sixty Roman noblemen, his Guard 
of Honor, who form his escort at all 
church festivals, while Cardinals, Bish- 
ops, and others, according to their rank, 
march beside him, or near at hand. 

With his thumb and two fingers ex- 
tended in recognition of the Trinity, and 
at the same time showing the ring of St. 
Peter which he always wears, the Pope, 
followed by the ecclesiastic procession, 
passes down the nave between the files 
of soldiers, blessing the people as he 
goes. 

Upon reaching the altar the Pope is 
escorted to an elevated seat while the 
choir sings the Psalm of Entrance. Later, 
at the elevation of the Host, the cannon 
of St. Angelo (the citadel of Rome, which 
was built in the time of the Emperor 
[144] 



YULE-TIDE IN ITALY 

Hadrian) booms forth and every Roman 
Catholic bows his head in prayer, where- 
soever he may be. At the close of the 
service the gorgeous procession is again 
formed and the Pope is carried out of the 
church, blessing the multitude as he 
passes. 

New Year is the great Social feature of 
Yule-tide in Italy. Visits and some pres- 
ents are exchanged among friends, dinner 
parties, receptions, and f^tes of all kinds 
are in order, but all interest centers in 
the church observances until Epiphany, 
or Bafana, as Italians term it, when chil- 
dren hang up their stockings, c^ppo boxes 
are exchanged, and people indulge in 
home pleasures to some extent. The wild 
hilarity of the Saturnalian festivities of 
former times is fast dying out, for the 
growth of cities and towns has not proved 
conducive to such observances, and only 
[145] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

in the smaller places is anything of the 
sort observed. 

Yule-tide in Italy at the present day is 
principally a church festival. 

THE EVE OF CHEISTMAS 

(1901) 

Cometli tlie yearly Feast, the wonderous Holy 

Night, 
Worthy of sacred hymn and solemn rite. 

No harbingers of joy the olden message sing. 
Nor gifts of Peace to waiting mortals bring. 

Alone the thronging hosts of evil men I hear. 
And see the anxious brow and falling tear. 

The Age will bear no yoke j forgets the God 

above, 
Nor duteous payment yields to parents' love. 

Suspicious Discord rends the peaceful State in 

twain, 
And busy Murder follows in her train. 

Gone are the loyal faith, the rights revered of 

old— 
Eeigns but a blind and cruel lust of Gold ! 

[146] 



YULE-TIDE IE ITALY 

O come, Thou holy Child ! Pity the fallen world, 
Lest it should perish, into darkness hurled. 

Out of the laboring Night grant it a newer birth. 
And a New Age to bloom o'er all the earth. 

Circle with splendors old the brow of Faith 

divine ; 
Let her full glory on the nations shine. 

Nerve her to battlings new ; palsy her foes with 

dread ; 
Place the victorious laurel on her head. 

Be Error's mist dissolved, and ancient feuds re- 
pressed. 
Till Earth at last find quietude and rest. 

O gentle Peace, return nor evermore depart ; 
And link us hand in hand and heart to heart ! 
—Pope Leo XIII. 
(Translated by S. T. Henry.') 



[147] 




GHAPTER Vffl. 
YULE-TIDE IN SBAIN 

^' "With antics and with fooleries, with shouting 
and with laughter, 
They fill the streets of Burgos — and the Devil 
he comes after. " 

TN Spain, the land of romance and song, 

of frost and flowers, where at Yule-tide 

the mountains wear a mantle of pure 

white snow while flowers bloom gaily in 

[148] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

field and garden, the season's observance 
approaches more nearly than in any other 
country to the old Roman Saturnalia. 

The Celts who taught the Spaniards the 
love of ballads and song left some traces 
of the sun-worshipers' traditions, but they 
are few in comparison with those of other 
European countries. Spain is a land ap- 
parently out of the line of Wodin's travel 
and influence, where one looks in vain 
for the inysterious mistletoe, the pretty 
holly, and the joyful Christmas tree. 

The season is rigidly observed in 
churches, but otherwise it loses its spirit 
of devotion in that of wild revelry. Mu- 
sic, mirth, and hilarity are the leading 
features of the occasion, and home and 
family pleasures are secondary affairs. 

Of course the customs vary in different 
provinces, some of which still cling to 
primitive forms of observance while oth- 
[149] 



YULE-TIDE Ilf MANY LANDS 

ers are fast adopting those of foreign resi- 
dents and becoming Continental in style. 
But everywhere throughout the land 
Christmas is the day of days, — the great 
church festival observed by all. 

The Noche-buena or Good Night, pre- 
ceding Christmas, finds the shops gay 
with sweets and fancy goods suitable for 
holiday wear, but not with the pretty gifts 
such as circulate from home to home in 
northern countries, for here gifts are not 
generally exchanged. 

Doctors, ministers, and landlords re- 
ceive their yearly gifts of turkeys, cakes, 
and produce from their dependents, but 
the love of presenting dainty Christmas 
gifts has not reached the land of the three 
C's — the Cid, Cervantes, and Columbus. 

Do you know what you would probably 
do if you were a dark-cheeked Spanish 
lad named Miguel, or a bright-eyed, light- 
[150] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

hearted Spanish maiden named Dolo- 
res? 

If you were Miguel you would don your 
black jacket and brown trousers, knot 
your gayest kerchief around your neck, 
and with your guitar in hand you would 
hasten forth to enjoy the fun that pre- 
vails in every street of every town in 
Spain on Christmas Eve, or, as it is known 
there, the Noche-buena. 

If you were pretty Dolores you would 
surely wear your red or yellow skirt, 
or else of striped red and yellow, your 
best embroidered velvet jacket, — handed 
down from mother to daughter, and a 
wonderful sample of the handiwork that 
once made the country famous, — your 
numerous necklaces and other orna- 
ments. You would carefully braid your 
heavy dark tresses and bedeck your 
shapely head with bright flowers, then 
[151] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

with your panderetta or tambourine in 
hand, you too would join the merry 
throng that fill the air with mirthful 
songs and music on Noche-buena; for re- 
member, 

" This is the eve of Christmas, 
No sleep from, now till morn." 

The air is full of the spirit of unrest, 
castanets click joyously, tambourines jin- 
gle their silvery strains, while guitars and 
other musical instruments help to swell 
the babel of sound preceding the hour of 
the midnight mass : 

" At twelve will the child be born," 

and if you have not already done some 
especially good deed to some fellow mor- 
tal, you will hasten to clear your con- 
science by such an act before the bells an- 
nounce the hour of its birth. As the 
stars appear in the heavens, tiny oil lamps 
are lighted in every house, and among all 
[152] 



YULE-TIDE m SPAIN 

devout Roman Catholics the image of the 
Virgin is illuminated with a taper. 

The streets, which in many cities are 
brilliantly lighted with electricity, are 
crowded with turkeys awaiting pur- 
chasers. They are great fat birds that 
have been brought in from the country 
and together with quacking ducks and 
cooing pigeons help to swell the sounds 
that fill the clear, balmy air. Streets and 
market-places are crowded with live stock, 
while every other available spot is piled 
high with delicious fruit ; — golden or- 
anges, sober-hued dates, and indispen- 
sable olives ; and scattered among these 
are cheeses of all shapes and kinds, sweet- 
meats of all sorts, the choice candies that 
are brought from various provinces, and 
quaint pigskins of wine. No wonder 
every one who can do so hurries forth 
into the street on Noche-huena. 
[153] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

If you are not tempted to stop and gaze 
at these appetizing exhibits, you will pass 
quickly on to the brightly lighted booths 
devoted to toys. Oh, what a feast for 
young eyes I Here yours will surely light 
on some coveted treasure. It may be an 
ordinary toy, a drum, a horn, or it may 
be a Holy Manger, Shepherds, The Wise 
Men, or even a Star of the East. 

It is hard to keep one's purse closed 
among such a surfeit of tempting arti- 
cles, and everywhere money flows freely 
from hand to hand, although the Spanish 
are usually very frugal. 

As the bells clang out the hour of mid- 
night, you will hurry to join the throng 
wending its way to the nearest church, 
where priests in their gorgeous robes, — 
some of them worn only on this occasion 
and precious with rare embroidery and 
valuable jewels, — perform the midnight 
[154] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

or cock-crow mass, and where the choir 
and the priests chant a sweet Christmas 
hymn together. What if it is late when 
the service ends? Christmas Eve with- 
out dancing is not to be thought of in 
Spain. So you go forth to find a 
group of Gipsy dancers who are always 
on hand to participate in this great fes- 
tival ; or you watch the graceful Spanish 
maiden in her fluffy skirts of lace, with 
her deep pointed bodice, a bright flower 
in her coal-black hair beside the tall comb, 
and her exquisitely shaped arms adorned 
with heavy bracelets. " Oh, what mag- 
nificent eyes ! What exquisite long 
lashes ! " you exclaim to yourself. See 
her poise an instant with the grace of a 
sylph, one slippered foot just touching 
the floor, then click, click, sound the cas- 
tanets, as they have sounded for upwards 
of two thousand years and are likely to do 
[155] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

for two thousand more, for their inspirit- 
ing click seems necessary to move Span- 
ish feet and give grace to the uplifted 
arms. At first she may favor you with 
the energetic fandango, or the butterfly- 
like bolero, but on Christmas Eve the Jota 
is the universal favorite. It is danced 
and sung to music which has been brought 
down to the present time unwritten, and 
which was passed from mouth to mouth 
through many generations. Translated 
the words read : 

" Of Jesus the Nativity is celebrated everywhere, 
Everywhere reigns contentment, everywhere 
reigns pleasure," 

the audience joining in the refrain : 

" Long live merrymaking, for this is a day of 
rejoicing, 
And may the perfume of pleasure sweeten our 
existence. " 

It will probably be late into the morn- 
ing before the singing, dancing, thought- 
[156] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

less crowd turns homeward to rest, and 
although it is certainly a crowd intoxi- 
cated with pleasure, it is never in that 
condition from liquor. 

There are three masses on Christmas 
Day, and all devout Catholics attend one 
of them at least, if not all. In some 
places Nativity plays are given on Christ- 
mas Eve or else on Christmas Day, They 
are long performances, but never tedious 
to the audiences, because the scenes appeal 
to them with the force of absolute realism. 
On Christmas morning the postmen, tele- 
graph boys, and employees of various 
vocations, present to their employers and 
others little leaflets containing a verse 
appropriate to the day, or the single sen- 
tence " A Happy Christmas," expecting to 
receive in return a Christmas box filled 
with goodies of some kind. 

While Spanish children do not have the 
[157] 



YULE-TIDE IN MAKY LANDS 

Christmas tree to gather around they do 
have the pretty Nacimiento, made of 
plaster and representing the place of 
Christ's nativity, with the manger, tiny 
men and women, trees, and animals, such 
as are supposed to have existed at the 
time and place of the Nativity. 

The Nacimiento (meaning being born) 
is lighted with candles, and little folks 
dance gayly around it to the music of 
tambourines and their own sweet voices, 
joyously singing one of the pretty Nativ- 
ity songs. Groups of children go about 
the streets singing these songs of which 
there are many. 

In this pleasing custom of the Naci- 
miento one sees a vestige of the Saturnalia, 
for during that festival small earthenware 
figures used to be for sale for the pleasure 
of children. Although the Spanish race 
is a mixed one and various peoples have 
[158] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

been in power from time to time, at one 
period the country was, with the excep- 
tion of Basque, entirely Romanized. It 
is interesting to note the lingering influ- 
ence of this mighty Roman nation and 
find in this century that some of the main 
features of the great Roman feast are re- 
tained in the great Christian feast at Yule- 
tide. 

Southern races were always firm be- 
lievers in Fate. The Mohammedans 
reverenced the Tree of Fate, but the 
Romans held sacred the urn containing 
the messages of Fate. So the Spaniards 
cling to the urn, from which at Christ- 
mas gatherings of friends it is the custom 
to draw the names of the men and women 
whom Fate ordains shall be devoted 
friends during the year, — the men per- 
forming all the duties of lovers. This 
drawing of one's Fate for the coming year 
[159] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

creates great merriment and often no little 
disappointment. But Fate is inexorable 
and what is to be must be, so the Spanish 
maiden accepts graciously the one Fate 
thus assigns her. 

After the midday breakfast on Christ- 
mas morning the people usually seek out- 
of-door pleasures. Among many of the 
old families only blood relations are ex- 
pected to eat and drink together on this 
holy day. 

Ordinarily the Spaniard " may find 
perfect entertainment in a crust of bread 
and a bit of garlic " as the proverb claims, 
but at Yule-tide his stomach demands 
many delicacies peculiar to the season. 
The Puchero Olla, the national dish for 
dinner, must have a few extra ingredients 
added on this occasion. The usual com- 
pound of chickens, capons, bacon, mutton, 
beef, pig's feet, lard, garlic, and everything 
[160] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

else the larder aflPords, is quite insufficient 
to be boiled together on this occasion. 
However, if one has no relatives to in- 
vite him to a feast, it is an easy matter to 
secure a Christmas dinner on the streets, 
where men are ready to cook for him 
over their braseros of charcoal and venders 
are near at hand to offer preserved fruits, 
the famous almond rock, almond soup, 
truffled turkey, or the most desirable of 
the season's delicacies, — sea-bream, which 
is brought from Cadiz especially for 
Christmas use, and which is eaten at 
Christmas in accordance with the old- 
time custom. Nuts of all kinds are 
abundant. By the side of the streets, 
venders of chestnuts — the finest in the 
world — lean against their clumsy two- 
wheeled carts, picturesque in costumes 
that are ragged and soiled from long 
service. Rich layer-cakes of preserves, 
[161] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

having almond icing with fruits and 
liquor-filled ornaments of sugar on top, 
are frequently sent from friend to friend 
for dinner. 

In Seville, and possibly in other places, 
the people hurry to the cathedral early in 
the afternoon in order to secure good 
places before the high altar from which 
to view the Siexes, or dances. Yes, 
dances ! This ceremony takes place 
about five o'clock just as the daylight 
fades and night draws near. Ten chor- 
isters and dancers, indiscriminately 
termed Siexes, appear before the altar 
clad in the costume of Seventeenth-Cen- 
tury pages, and reverently and with 
great earnestness sing and dance an old- 
time minuet, with castanet accompani- 
ment, of course. The opening song is in 
honor of the Virgin, beginning : 

** Hail, O Virgin, most pure and beautiful." 
[162] 



YULE-TIDE IK SPAIN 

Among the ancients dancing was a 
part of religious services, but it is now 
seldom seen in churches. This Christ- 
mas dance, given in a beautiful cathedral 
just at the close of day, is a very impress- 
ive ceremony and forms a fitting close 
to the Spanish Christmas, which is so 
largely made up of customs peculiar to 
ancient and modern races. 

In every part of Spain song and dance 
form an important part of the festivities 
of Yule-tide, which lasts two weeks, al- 
though the laboring class observe but two 
days of pleasure. At the palace the King 
holds a reception on New Year's, not for 
the public generally, but for the diplo- 
mats and grandees. 

The higher circles of society observe 

New Year as a time of exchanging calls 

and visiting, feasting and merrymaking. 

At the banquets of the wealthy every 

[163] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

possible delicacy in the way of food is 
temptingly displayed, and great elegance 
in dress indulged in by the ladies, who 
wear their finest gowns and adorn them- 
selves in priceless jewels and rare laces. 
But there is so much etiquette to be ob- 
served among this class of Spaniards that 
one looks for the real enjoyment of the 
season among the common classes. 

In some parts of Spain bull-fights are 
given as late as December, but cold 
weather has a softening effect on the 
poor bulls and makes them less ferocious, 
so unless the season proves unusually 
warm that favorite entertainment has to 
be abandoned for a time. Meanwhile in 
the streets and homes one may often see 
a father on all fours enacting the infuri- 
ated bull for his little sons to attack ; in 
this way he teaches them the envied art 
of bull-fighting. The Yule-tide festivi- 
[164] 



YULE-TIDE IN SPAIN 

ties end at Twelfth Day, — Epiphany, — 
when crowds of young folks go from 
gate to gate in the cities to meet the 
Magi, and after much merriment they 
come to the conclusion that the Magi 
will not appear until the following year. 



NIGHT OF MAEVELS 

In such a marvelous night ; so fair 
And full of wonder, strange and new, 

Ye shepherds of the vale, declare — 
Who saw the greatest wonder ? 
Who? 

(First Shepherd) 
I saw the trembling fire look wan ; 

(Second Shepherd) 
I saw the sun shed tears of blood ; 

(Third Shepherd) 
I saw a God become a man ; 

(Fourth Shepherd) 
1 saw a man become a God. 



[165] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

O, wondrous marvels ! at the thought, 
The bosom's awe and reverence move ; 

But who such prodigies hath wrought ? 
What gave such wondrous birth ? 
'T was love! 

What called from heaven the flame divine, 
Which streams in glory far above, 

And bid it o'er earth's bosom shine, 
And bless us with its brightness? 
Love! 

Who bid the glorious sun arrest 

His course, and o'er heaven's concave move 
In tears, — the saddest, loneliest, 

Of the celestial orbs ? 
'Twas love ! 

Who raised the human race so high, 

E'en to the starry seats above. 
That, for our mortal progeny, 

A man became a God ? 
'Twas love ! 

Who humbled from the seats of light 
Their Lord, all human woes to prove, 

Led the great Source of day to night, 
And made of God a man ? 
'Twas love ! 

[ 166 ] 



YULE-TIDE m SPAIN 

Yes ! love has wrought, and love alone, 
The victories all, — beneath, above: 

And heaven and earth shall shout as one, 
The all-triumphant song 
Of love. 

The song through all heaven's arches ran, 
And told the wondrous tales aloud, 

The trembling fire that looked so wan, 
The weeping sun behind the cloud, 

A God, a God become a man ! 

A mortal man become a God. 

— Violante Do Ceo. 



[167] 




CHAPTER IX. 
YULE-TIDE IN AMERICA 

'' And they who do their souls no wrong, 
But keep, at eve, the faith of morn, 
Shall daily hear the angel -song, 
'To-day the Prince of Peace is born.' " 

— James Bussell Lowell. 

•^ I ^0 people who go into a new country 
■*■ to live, Christmas, which is so gen- 
erally a family day, must of necessity be 
[168] 



YULE-TIDE 11*1^ AMERICA 

a lonely, homesick one. They carry with 
them the memory of happy customs, of 
loved ones far away, and of observances 
which can never be held again. So many 
of the earliest Christmasses in America 
were peculiarly sad ones to the various 
groups of settlers ; most especially was 
this the case with the first Christmas ever 
spent by Europeans in the New World. 

The intrepid mariner, Christopher 
Columbus, entered the port of Bohio, 
in the Island of Hayti, on St. Nicholas 
Day, December 6, 1492, and in honor of 
the day named that port Saint Nicholas. 
The Pinta with her crew had parted from 
the others and gone her own way, so the 
Santa Maria and the Nina sailed on to- 
gether, occasionally stopping where the 
port seemed inviting. While in one of 
these, Columbus heard of rich mines not 
far distant and started for them. The 
[169] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

Admiral and his men were tired from 
continued watching, and as the sea was 
smooth and the wind favorable, they 
went to sleep leaving the ship in care of 
a boy. Who he was no one knows, but 
he was evidently the first Christian boy 
to pass a Christmas Eve on this con- 
tinent, — and a sad one it was for him. 
The ship struck a sand-bank and settled, 
a complete wreck, in the waters of the 
New World. Fortunately no lives were 
lost, and the wreckage furnished material 
for the building of a fortress which oc- 
cupied the men's time during the re- 
mainder of the Yule-tide. 

The Nina was too small to accommo- 
date two crews, therefore on Christmas 
Day many of the men were wondering 
who were to stay on that far-away island 
among the strange looking natives of 
whom they knew nothing. 
[170] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

The Chief of Guarico (Petit Anse), 
whom Columbus was on his way to visit 
at the time of the disaster, sent a fleet of 
canoes to the assistance of the strangers, 
and did what he could to make them 
happy during the day. The Spaniards 
and the natives worked until dawn on 
Christmas morning, bringing ashore what 
they could secure from the wreck, and 
storing it away on the island for future 
use. Strange to relate, they succeeded in 
saving all of their provisions, the spars, 
and even many of the nails of the 
wrecked 8anta Maria. But what a 
Christmas morning for Columbus and his 
men, stranded on an island far, far from 
home, among a strange people ! There 
were no festivities to be observed by that 
sad, care-worn company of three hundred 
men on that day, but the following morn- 
ing Chief Guacanagari visited the Nina 
[171] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

and took Columbus ashore, where a 
banquet was prepared in his honor, the 
first public function attended by Colum- 
bus in America. It can be pictured only 
in imagination. There on that beautiful 
island which seemed to them a paradise 
on earth, with tall trees waving their 
long fronds in the warm breeze, with 
myriads of birds such as they had never 
seen filling the air with song, Columbus 
stood, attired in his gorgeous uniform 
and dignified, as it befitted him to be, 
beside his host who was elegantly dressed 
in a shirt and a pair of gloves which 
Columbus had given him, with a coronet 
of gold on his head. The visiting chief- 
tains with gold coronets moved about in 
nature's garb, among the " thousand," — 
more or less, — who were present as guests. 
The feast consisted of shrimps, cassavi, 
— the same as the native bread of 
[172] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

to-day, — and some of their nutritive 
roots. 

It was not a sumptuous repast although 
it may have been a bountiful one, yet 
they probably enjoyed it. 

The work of building a fortress began 
at once. Within ten days the Fortress 
of Navidad was completed. It stood on 
a hill and was surrounded with a broad, 
deep ditch for protection against natives 
and animals, and was to be the home of 
those of the company who remained in 
the New World, for the Nina was too 
small to convey all hands across the ocean 
to Spain, and nothing had been heard 
of the Pinta. Leaving biscuits sufficient 
for a year's supply, wine, and such pro- 
visions as could be spared, Columbus 
bade farewell to the forty men whom he 
was never to see again, and sailed for 
the Old World on January 4, 1493. 

[ n3 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

So far as recorded, Columbus was the 
only one among the Spaniards who re- 
ceived gifts during this first Yule-tide in 
America. But what seemed a cruel fkte 
to him was the means of bestowing a 
valuable gift upon the world. Had the 
Santa Maria continued her course in 
safety that Christmas Eve there might 
never have been a fortress or any Euro- 
pean settlement founded. So, although 
it was a sad, troubled Yule-tide to the 
Spanish adventurers, it proved a memo- 
rable one in the annals of America. 

Four hundred years later the anchor 
of the Santa Maria was discovered and 
brought to the United States to be one 
of its treasured exhibits at the great 
Columbian Exposition, where a descend- 
ant of Columbus was the honored guest 
of the Government. 

One hundred and fifty years after the 
[174] 



ii 



YULE-TIDE m AMERICA 

building of the Fortress of Navidad, after 
many ineffectual attempts, a settlement 
was effected in the New World by a col- 
ony from England. They sailed from 
Blackwell, on the Thames, on Decem- 
ber 19, 1606, and for six weeks were 
" knocking about in sight of England." 
Their first Christmas was spent within 
sight of their old homes. According to 
Captain John Smith's account, " It was, 
indeed, but a sorry Christmas that we 
spent on board," as many of them were 
very sick, yet Smith adds, " We made 
the best cheer we could." The colonists 
v' landed and solemnly founded Jamestown 
on May 13, 1607. That year Yule-tide 
was spent by Captain Smith among the 
Powhatan Indians, by whom he was 
taken captive. This colony consisted of 
men only ; no genuine Christmas ob- 
servance could take place without women 
[175] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

and children, and no women arrived until 
1609, and then only twenty came. But 
after the ninety young women arrived 
in 1619, supplied to planters for one 
hundred pounds of tobacco each, and a 
cargo of twenty negroes had landed to 
help with the work, there may have been 
an attempt at keeping Christmas although 
there is no record of the fact. 

At this season there was usually a raid 
made upon the Indians. Smith's last ex- 
pedition against them was at Christmas- 
time, when, as he records in his journal, 
" The extreme winde, rayne, frost, and 
snow caused us to keep Christmas among 
the salvages where we weere never more 
merry, nor fed on more plenty of good 
Oysters, Fish, Flesh, Wild Fowl and good 
bread, nor never had better fires in Eng- 
land." 

In after years prosperity smiled on the 
[176] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

land of the Jamestown settlers. Amidst 
the peace and plenty that followed the 
earlier years of strife and poverty, the 
Virginians became noted for their hospi- 
tality and lavish observance of Yule-tide. 
It was the happy home-coming for daugh- 
ters, sons, uncles, aunts, and cousins of 
the first, second, and even the third de- 
gree. For whosoever was of the name 
and lineage, whether rich or poor, was 
welcomed at this annual ingathering of 
the family. Every house was filled to 
overflowing; great hickory fires were 
lighted on the open hearths ; the rooms 
were brilliantly lighted with candles, and 
profusely trimmed with greens. From 
doors and ceilings were hung sprigs of 
the mysterious mistletoe, for 

"O'er the lover 
I'll shake tlie berry'd mistletoe ; that he 
May long remember Christmas," 

[177] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

was the thought of merry maidens as they 
decorated their homes. 

Christmas brought carriage-loads of 
guests to these old-time homes, to partake 
of the good cheer and enjoy weeks of fun 
and frolic, indoors and out. For many 
days before Christmas arrived, colored 
cooks, the regular, and extra ones, were 
busy cooking from morning till evening, 
preparing for the occasion. The store- 
rooms were replete with every variety of 
tempting food the ingenious minds of the 
cooks could devise, for Christmas dinner 
was the one great test of their ability and 
woe to Auntie whose fire was too hot, or 
whose judgment was at fault on this oc- 
casion. 

To the whites and blacks Christmas 
was a season of peace, plenty, and merri- 
ment. In the " Great House " and in the 
cabin there were music, dancing, and 
[178] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

games until New Year. This was " Hir- 
ing Day," and among the blacks joy was 
turned to sadness as husbands, fathers, 
brothers, and lovers were taken away to 
work on distant plantations, for those 
who hired extra help through the year 
were often extremely cruel in their treat- 
ment of the slaves. 

The gladsome Virginia Christmas in 
time became the typical one of the South, 
where it was the red-letter day of the year, 
the most joyous of all holidays. The 
churches were lovingly and tastefully dec- 
orated with boughs of green and flowers 
by the ladies themselves and conscien- 
tiously attended by both old and young. 
In the South there was never any of the 
somberness that attended church services 
in the North among descendants of the 
Plymouth Colony who came to America 
later. 

[ 179 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

The Puritans of England early discoun- 
tenanced the observance of Christmas. 
But among the Pilgrims who reached the 
American coast in December, 1620, were 
mothers who had lived so long in Hol- 
land they loved the old-time custom of 
making merry on that day. To these 
dear women, and to the kind-hearted, 
child-loving Elder Brewster, we are in- 
debted for the first observance of the day 
held by the Plymouth Colony. 

According to the Journal of William 
Bradford, kept for so many years, the 
Pilgrims went ashore, " and ye 25 day 
(Dec.) begane to erecte ye first house for 
comone use to receive them and their 
goods." Bradford conscientiously refrains 
from alluding to the day as Christmas, but 
descendants of these godly Puritans are 
glad to learn that home-making in New 
England was begun on Christmas Day. 
[180] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

Many very interesting stories have 
been written about this first Christmas. 
One writer even pictures the more 
lenient Elder Brewster as going ashore 
that morning and inviting the Indian 
Chief Massasoit to go aboard the May- 
flower with him. According to the story, 
the good man endeavored to impress the 
chief with the solemnity and significance 
of the occasion, and then with Massasoit, 
two squaws, and six boys and girls, be- 
comingly attired in paint and feathers, he 
returned to the ship. 

The women and children from over the 
sea met their new neighbors and guests, 
received from them little baskets of nuts 
and wintergreen berries, and in exchange 
gave their guests beads, toys, raisins, 
and such simple gifts, to which Elder 
Brewster added a blessing bestowed upon 
each child. 

[ 181 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

The story reads well. But the truth, 
according to history, makes the first visit 
of Massasoit occur some three months 
later, on March twenty-second. The 
Puritans had a happy Christmas dinner 
together on board the ship which was the 
only home they possessed as yet, and it is 
to be presumed that the exceedingly con- 
scientious non-observers of the day par- 
took quite as freely of the salt fish, bacon, 
Brussels sprouts, gooseberry tarts, and 
English plum pudding, as did those home- 
sick, tear-choked women who prepared 
the dinner. 

It is certainly to be regretted that ves- 
sels are no longer built with the wonder- 
ful storage capacity of the Mayflower ! 
Beside bringing over the innumerable 
family relics that are treasured throughout 
this country, it is stated that this ship 
brought a barrel full of ivy, holly, laurel, 
[182] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

and immortelles, with which the table was 
decorated, and wreaths woven for the chil- 
dren to wear. Bless those dear, brave 
women who dared to bring " green stuff" 
for " heathenish decorations " way across 
the ocean ! Let us add a few extra sprays 
of green each Christmas in memory of 
them. The greens, plum puddings, and 
other good things had such a happy effect 
that, according to Bradford, "at night the 
master caused us to have some Beere." 
This was an event worthy of a capital B, 
as the men had worked all day in the 
biting cold at house-building, with only 
a scanty supply of water to drink. 

Alas I That Christmas on the May- 
flower was the last the Pilgrims were to 
enjoy for many a long year. Other 
ship-loads of people arrived during the 
year and in 1621, " One ye day called 
Christmas Day, ye Gov. called them out 
[183] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

to worke (as was used), but ye most of 
this new company excused themselves and 
said it wente against their consciences to 
work on yt day. So ye Gov. tould them 
that if they made it mater of conscience, 
he would spare them till they were better 
informed. So he led away ye rest and 
left them, but when they came home at 
noone from their worke, he found them in 
ye streete at play, openly, some pitching 
ye bair, and some at stoole-ball, and shuch- 
like sports. So he went to them and tooke 
away their implements, and tould them 
that was against his conscience, that they 
should play and others worke. If they 
made ye keeping of it mater of devotion, 
let them kepe their houses, but ther 
should be no gameing or revelling in ye 
streets. Since which time nothing had 
been attempted that way, at least openly." 
And thus ended the last attempt at Christ- 
[184] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMBEICA 

mas observance during Governor Brad- 
ford's many terms of office. 

The Massachusetts Colony that arrived 
in 1630, and settled in and around Boston, 
believed that Christ's mission on earth as 
the Saviour of man was too serious a one 
to be celebrated by the fallen race He 
came to save; they considered it absolutely 
wicked for any one to be lively and joy- 
ous when he could not know whether or 
no he was doomed to everlasting punish- 
ment. Beside that, jollity often led to 
serious results. Were not the jails of Old 
England full to repletion the day after 
Christmas ? It was wisest, they thought, 
to let the day pass unnoticed. And so 
only occasionally did any one venture to 
remember the fact of its occurrence. 
Among the men and women who came 
across the ocean during succeeding years 
there must have been many who differed 
[ 185 ] 



YULE-TIDE 11^ MANY LANDS 

from the first colony in regard to Christ- 
mas, for in May, 1659, the General Court 
of Massachusetts deemed it necessary to 
enact a law : " That whosoever shall be 
found observing any such day as Christ- 
mas or the like, either by forbearing of 
labour, feasting, or any other way, upon 
any such accounts as aforesaid, shall be 
subjected to a fine of five shillings." 

For upward of twenty-two years it re- 
mained unlawful in Massachusetts to 
have a merry Christmas. There were no 
pretty gifts on that day to make happy 
little God-be-thanked, Search-the-scrip- 
tures, Seek-wisdom, Prudence, Hope, or 
Charity. However, Santa Claus had em- 
issaries abroad in the land. In December, 
1686, Governor Andros, an Episcopalian, 
and a representative of the King, brought 
about the first concession in favor of the 
day. He believed in celebrating Christ- 
[186] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

mas and intended to hold appropriate 
services. The law enacted by Parlia- 
ment in June, 1647, abolishing the ob- 
servance of the day, had been repealed 
in 1659, and Gov. Andros knew he had 
the law in his favor. But every meeting- 
house was conscientiously (or stubbornly) 
closed to him. So he was forced to hold 
service in the Town House, going with an 
armed soldier on each side to protect him 
from the " good will " exhibited by his 
fellow townsmen. He held services that 
day, and it is believed to be the first 
observance of Christmas held under legal 
sanction in Boston. 

The great concession was made by the 
Old South Congregation in 1753 when it 
offered its sanctuary to the worshipers 
in King's Chapel, after that edifice was 
burned, for them to hold their Christmas 
services. It was with the implicit under- 
[ 187 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

standing that there was to be no spruce, 
holly, or other greens used on that oc- 
casion to desecrate their meeting-house. 

Little by little the day was brought 
into favor as a holiday, but it was as late 
as the year 1856, while Nathaniel P. 
Banks was Governor, that the day was 
made a legal holiday in Massachusetts. 

The good Dutch Fathers, true to the 
teachings of their forefathers, sailed for 
the New World with the image of St. 
Nicholas for a figurehead on their vessel. 
They named the first church they built 
for the much-loved St. Nicholas and 
made him patron saint of the new city on 
Manhattan Island. Thanks, many many 
thanks, to these sturdy old Dutchmen 
with unpronounceable names who pre- 
served to posterity so many delightful 
customs of Christmas observance. What 
should we have done without them? 
[188] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

They were quite a worthy people not- 
withstanding they believed in enjoying 
life and meeting together for gossip and 
merrymaking. Christmas was a joyful 
season with them. The churches and 
quaint gabled houses were trimmed with 
evergreens, great preparations were made 
for the family feasts, and business was 
generally suspended. The jolly old City 
Fathers took a prolonged rest from cares 
of office, even ordering on December 14, 
1654, that, " As the winter and the holi- 
days are at hand, there shall be no more 
ordinary meetings of this board (the City 
Corporation) between this date and three 
weeks after Christmas. The Court mes- 
senger is ordered not to summon any one 
in the meantime." 

Sensible old souls ! They were not go- 
ing to allow business to usurp their time 
and thought during this joyful season I 
[189] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

The children must have their trees, hung 
with gifts ; tlie needy must be especially 
cared for, and visits must be exchanged ; 
so the City was left to take care of itself, 
while each household was busy making 
ready for the day of days, the season of 
seasons. 

What a time those hausfraus had 
polishing up their silver, pewter, brass, 
and copper treasures, in opening up best 
rooms, and newly sanding the floors in 
devious intricate designs ! What a pile 
of wood was burned to bake the huge 
turkeys, pies, and puddings ! What 
pains the fathers took to select the 
rosiest apples and the choicest nuts to 
put in each child's stocking on Christmas 
Eve. Fortunately, children obeyed the 
injunction of Scripture in those days, and 
despised not the day of small things. 

How fortunate it was that there were 
[190] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMERICA 

no trains or other rapid modes of 
conveyance to bring visitors from the 
Puritan Colonies at this season. There 
was no possibility of any of their strict 
neighbors dropping in unexpectedly to 
furnish a free lecture, while the Dutch 
families were merrily dancing. The 
Puritans were located less than two hun- 
dred and eighty-five miles distant, yet 
they were more distantly separated by 
ideas than by space. But a little leaven 
was eventually to penetrate the entire 
country, and the customs that are now 
observed each Christmas throughout the 
Eastern, Middle, and Western States, are 
mainly such as were brought to this 
country by the Dutch. Americans have 
none of their own. In fact, they possess 
but little that is distinctively their own 
because they are a conglomerate nation, 
speaking a conglomerate language. 
[ 191 ] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS , 

According to the late Lawrence Hutton, 
" Our Christmas carols appear to have 
come from the Holy Land itself; our 
Christmas trees from the East by way of 
Germany; our Santa Claus from Hol- 
land; our stockings hung in the chimney, 
from France or Belgium ; and our Christ- 
mas cards and verbal Christmas greetings, 
our Yule-logs, our boars' heads, our plum 
puddings and our mince pies from Eng- 
land. Our turkey is, seemingly, our 
only contribution." Let us add the 
squash-pie ! 

These customs which have become 
general throughout the United States, 
varying of course in different localities, 
are being rapidly introduced into the 
new possessions where they are engrafted 
on some of the prettiest customs observed 
by the people in former years. In Porto 
Rico on Christmas Day they have a 
[192] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMERICA 

church procession of children in beauti- 
ful costumes, which is a very attractive 
feature. The people feast, dance, attend 
midnight mass on Christmas Eve, then 
dance and feast until Christmas morning. 
In fact they dance and feast most of the 
time from December twenty-fourth until 
January seventh, when not at church 
services. On Twelfth Night gifts are ex- 
changed, for as yet Santa Claus has not 
ventured to visit such a warm climate, so 
the children continue to receive their 
gifts from the Holy Kings. However, 
under the shelter of the American Flag, 
the Christmas tree is growing in favor. 
In Hawaii, so far as possible, the so-called 
New England customs prevail. 

In the Philippines even beggars in the 
streets expect a " Christmas present," 
which they solicit in good English. 

So from Alaska to the Island of Tu- 
[193] 



YULE-TIDE IN MANY LANDS 

tuila, the smallest of America's posses- 
sions, Yule-tide is observed in a similar 
manner. 

Yule-tide has been singularly connected 
with important events in the history of 
the United States. 

In the year 1776 Washington crossed 
the Delaware on Christmas night to cap- 
ture nearly one thousand Hessians after 
their Christmas revelries. A few days 
later, December 30th, Congress resolved 
to send Commissioners to the courts of 
Vienna, Spain, France, and Tuscany; and 
as victory followed the American leader, 
the achievements of this Yule-tide were 
declared by Frederick the Great of Prussia 
to be " the most brilliant of any recorded 
in the annals of military action." The 
year following, 1777, was probably one 
of the gloomiest Yule-tides in the experi- 
ence of the American forces. They lay 
[194] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

encamped at Valley Forge, sick and dis- 
couraged, destitute of food, clothing, and 
most of the necessities of life. 

It was on Christmas Eve, 1783, that 
Washington laid aside forever his mili- 
tary clothes and assumed those of a civil- 
ian, feeling, as he expressed it, " relieved 
of a load of public care." After Congress 
removed to Philadelphia, Martha Wash- 
ington held her first public reception in 
the Executive Mansion on Christmas Eve, 
when, it is stated, there was gathered" the 
most brilliant assemblage ever seen in 
America." 

At Yule-tide a few years later, 1799, 
the country was mourning the death of 
the beloved Father of his Country. 

In later years, the season continued 

prominent in the history of great events. 

The most notable of these were the two 

Proclamations of President Lincoln, the 

[195] 



YULE-TIDE m MANY LANDS 

one freeing the slaves, January 1, 1863, 
and the other proclaiming the " uncondi- 
tional pardon and amnesty to all con- 
cerned in the late insurrection," on De- 
cember 25, 1868t{y^ jLnd may the peace 
then declared remain with this people 
forevermore I 

THE VOICE OF THE CHEIST-CHILD 

The earth has grown cold with its burden of care. 

But at Christmas it always is young, 
The heart of the jewel burns lustrous and fair, 
And its soul full of music breaks forth on the air. 
When the song of the Angels is sung. 

It is coming, old earth, it is coming to-night ! 

On snowflakes which covered thy sod, 
The feet of the Christ-child fall gently and white. 
And the voice of the Christ-child tells out with 
delight 

That mankind are the children of God. 

On the sad and the lonely, the wretched and poor, 

The voice of the Christ-child shall fall ; 
And to every blind wanderer opens the door 
Of a hope which he dared not to dream of before. 
With a sunshine of welcome for all. 

[196] 



YULE-TIDE IN AMEEICA 

The feet of the humblest may walk in the field 

Where the feet of the holiest have trod, 
This, this is the marvel to mortals revealed, 
When the silvery trumpets of Christmas have 
pealed, 
That mankind are the children of God. 

— Fhillips Brooks. 



[ 197 ] 



INDEX 



Alaska, 193 Christian Fathers, The, 21 

Alexander the Great, 55 Cid, The, 150 

Alexander, King of the Scots, 42 Cole, Sir Henry, 46 



Alfred, King, 35 
American Flag, The, 193 
Andres, Governor, 187 
Archbishop of York, 42 
Aryans, 13, 57, 104 
Asia, 15 

Baal, 22 

Bambino, The, 1 33, 141 
Balder, 15, 16, 17, 22, 99 
Banks, N. P., 188 
Berserks, The, 26, 27, 29 
Bethlehem, 63 
Boar's Head, The, 39, 40 
Bocaccio, 132 
Bolero, The, 156 
Bornhern, Island of, 99 
Boston, 185 
'Boxing-day, 61 



Columbus, 150, 169, 171, 172 

Congress, 194, 195 

"Cream of the Year," The, 50, 

Czar, The, 1 16 

Dante, 132 
Druids, 17, 22, 31 

Easter, 89, 97 

Edda, The Younger, 14, 15, 17 

Elizabeth (Daughter of Henry 

VII), 44 
Epiphany, 127, 129, 145, 165 
Executive Mansion, The, 195 

Fandango, 156 

Father of His Country, 195 

Feast of Tabernacles, The, 21 



Bradford, William, 1 80, 183, 185 Festival of Fools, 129 



Bragi, 19 
Brew^ster, Elder, 180, 181 
Brooks, Phillips, 197 
BuU-fights, 164 



Fool's Dance, The, 44 
Frankland, 15 
Frederick the Great, 194 
Frey (Freya), 18, 45, 75, 95 
Frost King, The, 117 



Gregorian calendar. The, 24, 
112 



Cadiz, 161 
Csesar, Julius, 23 

appo, 136, 139 

Cervantes, 150 

Christ, 13, 17, 21, 28, 63, 135, Hackin, The, 47 

185 Hadrian, Emperor, 145 

Christ-child, lOO, loi, I02, 129, Hakon the Good, 27 

196 Hampton Court, 44 



[199] 



INDEX 



Hawaii, 193 

Hayti, 169 

Hel, 17 

Henry III, 42 

Henry VII, 43, 44 

Henry VIII, 43 

" Hiring Day," 179 

Hoder, 16 

Holy Family, The, 135 

Holy Kings, The, 193 

Holy Land, The, 192 

Holy Manger, The, 125, 154 

Holy Night, 63, 65, 71, 140 

Holy Season, The, 140 

Hweolor-tid, 14 

Icons, 109 

Indo-European ancestors, 14 

Jamestown, 175, 177 

Janus, 23 

Jehovah, 126 

Jesus, The Little, 126 

Jota, 156 

Julian calendar. The, 25 

Jutland, 15 

King's Chapel, 187 
Knight Rupert, 60 
Kolyada, 105, 106, 107 
Kolyadki, 108, 115 
Kriss Kringle, 60 

Lamb'' s-wool, 49 

Lapps, The, 76, 77, 79, 80, 8 

Lincoln, President, 195 

Litchfield, 42 

Loki, 15, 16 ♦ 

Lorraine, 69 

Luther, Martin, 58 

Lycia, 59 

Magi, The, 127, 165 



Magnificat, The, 142 
Margaret, Princess, 42 
Massachusetts Colony, 185 
Massasoit, 181, 182 
Mayflower, The, 181, 182, 1 83 
"Merry Christmas," 112 
Michelangelo, 132 
Miracle Plays, 66, 67 
Mistletoe, 31, 177 -« 
Mohammedans, The, 159 
Morris Dance, The, 43 ^ 
Myra, Bishop of, 59 

Nativity, The, 156, 157, 158 
Naulets, 121 

Navidad, Fortress of, 173, 175 
Nina, The, 169, 170, 171, 

173 
Noche-buena, 151, 152, 153 
Noel, 130 

North Pole, The, 76 
Norway, 15 
Novena, The, 134, 136 
Numa, 23, 24 

Odin, 13, 14, 76 • 
Olaf, King, 26, 28 
Ovsen, 113, 114 

Palara, 59 
Paradise Play, 66 
Parliament, 47, 187 
Passover, The Jewish, 21 
I Petit Anse, 171 
Petrarch, 132 
Petrograd, 115, 116 
Pfeffer Kuchen, 63, 69 
Philadelphia, 195 
Philippines, The, 193 
Pilgrims, The, 180 
Pinta, The, 169, 173 
Plymouth Colony, 179, 180 




[200] 



INDEX 



Pope, 143, 144, 145 
Pope Julius, 21 
Pope Leo XIII, 146 
Porto Rico, 192 
Fresepio, The, 1 36, 137 
Prince of Peace, The, 168 
Puchero Olla, The, 160 
Puritans, The, 47, 180, 191 
Pytheas, 55, 56 

" Queen of the North " (Sweden), 
95 

Raphael, 132 

Reformation, The, 46 

Richard II, 42 

Ring of St. Peter, The, 144 

Rome, 23 

Rowena, 44 

Saehrimnir, 19 

Sagas, 76 

St. Angelo, Castle of, 140, 144 

St. Barbar's Day, 125 

St. Nicholas, 59, 60, 188 % 

St. Peter's, 140, 142 

St. Sylvester's Eve, 112 

Santa Claus, 70, 79, 87, 88, 89, 

192, 193 
Santa Maria, The, 169, 171, 

174 
Saturn, 15 
Saturnalia, Roman, 17, 129, 149, 

158 
Saul, 22 

Saxons, The, 31, 33, 34, 35 
Seville, 162 

Shepherds' Hymn, The, 142 
Smith, Captain John, 175, 176 
Sotjelnik, 116 
Star of the East, The, 154 
Svea, 95 



Sweden, 15 
Sylvester, 7 1 

Tacitus, 23 
Thames, The, 175 
Thor, 13, 26, 28, 38, 95 
Tree of Fate, The, 159 
Tree of Nativity, The, 140 
Trinity, The, 126, 144 
Twelfth Night, 193 
Twelfth-Night Ball, The, 94 
Twelfth-Night Supper, The, 129 
Tyrolese Alps, 66 
Tyrolese peasants, 67 

Upsala, 95, 96 

Vrn of Fate, The, 138, 159 

Utwagustorp, 96 

Valhalla, 16, 19 

Valley Forge, 195 

Vienna, 194 

Vikings, 76 

Virgin Mary, The, 71, 83, 107, 

162 
Vortigern, 44 

Warwick, Earl of, 41 
Washington, 194, 195 
Washington, Martha, 195 
Wassail bowl. The, 44 » 
Westminster Hall, 42 
Whitehall, 48 
Winter Palace, The, 116 
Wise Men, The, 154 
Wodin, 13, 14, 95, 96, 149 

Yggdrasil, 58 

Ynle-log,The^37, 123, 124, 136, 
I9\ . 

Zealand, 99 



[201] 



CHRISTMAS IN LEGEND AND STOEI 

A Book for Boys and Girls 

Compfled by ELVA S. SMITH 

Cataloguer of Children's Books, Carnegie Library, Pittsburgh, 

and ALICE I. HAZELTINE 

Supervisor of Children's Work, St. Louis Public Library 
Illustrated from Famous Paintings Net, $1.50; Postpaid, $1 .70 

TN their experience in providing reading for 
children, these trained and efficient li- 
brarians saw the need of a book that should 
group the bat of real literature regarding 
Christmas. With wide research and great 
pains they have gathered the noblest, grand- 
est, sweetest, and most reverent of all that 
eminent writers in varying lands and in 
different times have told us in prose and 
verse of the origin and sentiment of this 
"gracious time." The style and decoration 
of the book are in keeping with its contents. 

** Clad in green, red and gold, the Christmas colors, comes this collection of 
all the sweetest and noblest stories and leg-ends that have gathered round the 
birthday of the Son of Man. This is an interesting volume, full of the spirit 
of Christmas." — The Churchman. 

" It is a superb book, beautifully printed, illustrated from famous paintings 
and splendidly bound. It is as well adapted to the adult as to the children, 
and will be read with interest, enjoyment and delight by many an older one." — 
The Brooklyn Citizen. 

" The literary standard of all these tales is exceptionally high, and the two 
editors of the volume are to be congratulated on their choice of selections for 
it." — The Christian Register. 

" It is redolent of Christmas cheer and reverence. The Yuletide spirit 
breathes from every page. The illustrations, taken for the most part from old 
paintings, are an invaluable embellishment of the attractive text.— Columbus 
Dispatch. 

" Perhaps the best and most comprehensive collection of good literature 
published regarding the birth of Christ and the celebration of^His birthday 
is this well-illustrated, clearly-written and plainly-printed book by two experts 
in children's reading. It will help to keep the spirit of Christmas alive through- 
out the year." — The Continent. 

For Bale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt 
of price by the publishers 

Lothrop, Lee k Sliepard Co. Boston 




THE STORY-TELLER 

For Little Children 

By MAUD LINDSAY 



Author of "A Story Garden for Little Children" 
Illustrations and Jacket in Colors by 
Florence Liley Young 



Twelve 



Square 8vo Cloth Price, Net, $i.oo; Postpaid, $i.io 




npHIS book takes its name from 
the wandering minstrel or "Story- 
teller" of the Middle Ages, who, 
from palace to cottage, was the most 
welcome of all guests in the opinion 
of the children. So will this book be 
most welcome. Its stories are fasci- 
nating, each one a gem of thought and 
expression. Each story has an ex- 
cellent full-page illustration in colors. 

When this book was in prepara- 
tion, Miss Poulsson, the noted author 
of "Finger Plays," etc., wrote to Miss Lindsay: "I love your 
poetic and imaginative stories so very much that I am more than glad 
to know that you have written some of the ' fanciful ' kind, as you 
call it. I think no one else can write that kind for children as well as 
you." 

" In makeup it is one of the most charming books of the season. The very 
stuff which children's dreams are made of." — New Ycrrk Sun, 

" Miss Lindsay is imaginative and has poetic fancy, and these stories 
should find a warm welcome from parents on the lookout for easy literature for 
their young people." — Independent. 

" Twelve fanciful stories by one who is so well known as a story writer 
that a book by her needs no word of recommendation." — Kindergarten 
Review. 

" Every story contains a suggestive thought — a lesson in helpfulness, 
brotherly love, or kindness. The plot and atmosphere of each story suggest the 
fairytale, the most fascinating cloak possible, perhaps, when the whole atten- 
tion of the child is sought." — Springfield Republican. 

For sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt 
of price by the publishers 

Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co. Boston 



A STORY GARDEN 

For Little Children 

By MAUD LINDSAY 

Author of "Mother Stories" and "More Mother Stories" 



Profusely 
Square 8vo Cloth Price, Net, $i.oo ; Postpaid, $i.io 



With Introduction by Emilie Poulsson 
Illustrated by F. Liley Young 




XT' QU ALLY suitable for home or 
school is this happily named, 
happily written "garden of stories" 
by an expert in the very difficult art of 
worthily interesting the little ones. It 
well deserves the warm commendation 
which Miss Poulsson graciously ac- 
cords it. There are twenty stories, in 
large, clear type, and each with a full- 
page picture and smaller decorative 
illustrations by an excellent artist, and 
every detail has been planned to delight 
the eye and mind of our little people and those who love them. 

"This is a book of mighty interesting- stories lor small children — the kind 
of a book mothers might read from when they are getting toddlers ready for 
bed. The stories are delightfully told, and should prove to be of absorbing in- 
terest to youngsters." — Springfield {Mass.) Union. 

" One of the daintiest, dearest volumes for the little people which we have 
seen for a long time; just the kind of stories in which the little folks delight." 
— Cleveland Town Topics. 

' ' The beautifully decorated book, with pictures which will delight, is named 
A STORY GARDEN, and the stories are for the very youngest children, ' a 
public in pinafore and rompers ' — stories which mirror the familiar and which 
are of the pure and beautiful order which will help guard the sweet child nat- 
ure." — Chicago News. 

"Miss Lindsay writes just the kind of stories that small children like to 
hear and that mothers like to have them hear. This book may well become 
familiar on the book-shelf of every nursery in the land." — Christian Register. 



for sale by all booksellers, or sent postpaid on receipt 
of price by the publisbers 

Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co. Boston 



NEXT»NIQHT STORIES 
By CLARENCB JOHNSON ME3SER 



by L. J. Bridgman i2mo Clotlt 
Pesorated Cover Price, Net, $1.00 




A MASTER hand at te'ling "animal stories *= 
holds the attention ci! four bright chiUren 
so successfully that the demand for a "next- 
night story-' cannot be denied, and twelve of 
the finest stories since "Uncle Remus" and 
Hans Christian Andersen are in this book. By 
endowing animals with speech and causing them 
to show human emotions, rich entertainment is 
furnished, and an excellent lesson of kindness 
and duty — not too proTiinent' — is ylain to see in 
each night's fftscinating disclosure. The stories 
in their order are; The Proud and Foolish 
Peacock; TaclebeHs The Donkey and the Wolf ; ITie Fox, the Raccoon, 
and tho Bus:.; The Dwarfs; The Frog Girl; Granny Chipmunk's Lesson; 
The Horse Oild ths Hen; Dandy Beaver and Sippy Woodchuck; Sambc 
and Je^iy; The Bird of Prey; The Hen That Ran Away. Children will 
be :ha.mad r-cd grown-ups will not oiily be glad of such fine material fcr 
captivating young listeners, but will themselves be interested in the skill- 
fully-told tales and in the pretty, humorous connecting thread of incidents 
that made the stories possible and ^d such a happy ending. 

" When coiifrof.ted by the te.I' mca-story challenge for a hundredt^ time these 
fsJes will prove a boon by replenishing your ejchausted supply. They are models 
at theu: Mnd." — ChristiaK World. Cleveland. 

" Children will be charmed, and even grown-ups ciuinot help bein^ interested in 
(he skillfully-toid tales. "—Milwaztiee Free Press, 

"NBXT-NIGHT STORIES are the kind that please as well as teach She evei 
oseful lesson ot kindness to dumb creatures." — Buffalo Commercial, 

" One need not fear lest th? volume will find wiliing listeners ; the difficult; 
(vill be to limit them to a single story a night."— T oy Record, 



For sals by ail bookmMen ar seat oss mesipt ofpontpaid 



BOSTOi^ 



THE SLEEPY-TIME STORY-BOOK 

By RUTH O. DYER 

With Frontispiece by Alice Barber Stephens and Fifty- 
four Pen-and-ink Illustrations by Bertha Davidson 
HoxiE Decorative End-leaves and Title-page 

Price, Net, $i.oo; Postpaid, $i.io 




INTELLIGENT mothers have learned 
better than to spoil the restful sleep of a 
child, and probably exert an unfortunate 
influence upon his disposition and character, 
by tales of ogres, dark woods, and savage 
beasts. They know he cannot rest well 
with his mind excited and his blood 
quickened by tales of adventure, but are at 
a loss to answer the natural plea for a bed- 
time story in a way that shall interest and 
yet soothe. The simple nature -stories in 
" this attractive book are the prescription of 
an expert for all such cases. Using familiar objects, they, with words 
adapted to a lulling tone of voice, will hold the attention of a child 
until refreshing drowsiness comes to bring healthful rest. 

"A unique and delightful volume of restful stories by which the mother 
may put her little child to bed. They meet not only the need of the mother 
who thinks she does not know how to tell stories, but their slow cadences must 
be almost magical in the way of lulling a child to refreshing drowsiness." — 
Bulletin of the American Institute of Child Life. 

" In the fashion of prose lullabies, Ruth Dyer has put together a little vol- 
ume of twenty -five short stories. Bach deals with the things of every-day child 
experiences, and aside from the standpoint of nap-time stories, forms a pleas- 
ant lesson for the child consciousness in making it aware of its surroundings." 
— 714* Churchman. 

•• Pretty little bedside tales of the tranquilizing order are grouped in this 
neat little book for the pleasure of little people and the relief of mothers." — 
Detroit Free Press. 



For sale by all bookaellers, ot sent postpaid on receipt 



of price by the publishers 



Lothrop, Lee & Sliepard Co. Boston 



XP 



HOHE ENTERTAININQ 

What to Do, and Mow to Do It 

edited by WILLIAH E. CHENERY 
92ano Cloth Price^Net, $.75 Postpaid, $.85 




'T^IS book is the product of years of study 
and the practical trying-out of every con- 
ceivable form of indoor entertainment. All the 
games, tricks, puzzles, and rainy-day and social- 
evening diversions have been practised by the 
editor; many are original with him, and many 
that are of course not original have been greatly 
improved by his intelligence. All are told in the 
plainest possible way, and with excellent taste. 
The book is well arranged and finely printed. At 
a low price it places within the reach of all the 
very best of bright and jolly means of making 
be — ^the best piace for a good time by those of all 



cheer and sunshine, A good 



home what it ought to 
agss. 

•' The book is bright, an i up to date, full of cl 
bolida,y hook."— 'lieii^ioui Idescope,J)ayton, Ohio, 

" For those who want new games for the home this book supplies the very best 
—good, clean, hearty games, full of fua and the spirit of laughte?:.'''^iV. T. Times, 

"Altogether the book is a perfect treasure-house for the young people's ^ainy 
day or social evening." — New Isedford Standard. 

"The arrangement is excellent and the instructions so simple that a child may 
follow them. A book like this is just the thing for social entenmg&."— Christian 
Endeavor World. 

" A book giving the best, cleanest and brightest games and tricks for home 
entertaining."— iTy^acws* Herald, 

«« The book is clearly written and should prove c& value to every young map 
who aspires to be the life of the ^9xty,"-^Baltt«tore Sun. 

"Only good, bright, clean games and tricks appeal to Mr. Chenery, and he 
Itias told in the simplest asdinost comprehensive manner how to get up ' amuse 
ments for evet^ oae.' "■"•^Bariford Courant. 



Pas sate li^ all 

LOTHROR LEE 



or sent offi swoelpt otpta^tsla 
hy the puhUabers 

& SHEPARD CO., BOSTON 



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